Embrace the Sky
by Stargazer-102006
Summary: Set ten years after Treasure Planet. Emaleen, fleeing from tragedy at the hands of a dangerous foe, hopes to find safety and a means of escape aboard Captain Jim Hawkins' ship.
1. Chapter 1

She ran. She ran faster than she thought her legs could carry her. She pumped her arms, each movement filled with a hot energy. Her chest felt tight— she couldn't even be sure she was still taking in breath. Every ounce of being that she had was applied toward moving forward. With every step, she feared that her legs would stop, her knees would buckle, and her fear would cease to hurtle her forward, but would fix her to one spot.

Even knowing the terrain as well as she did, she could not help the collisions with trees, or the sharp sting the branches traced across her skin when she ran too close to brush. In one horrifying moment, her foot tucked under a lifted root, and her frantic forward motion was halted. Before she could register what was happening, she landed hard on the ground, a gust of air escaping her. As she pushed herself up from the floor, in a moment that felt so painfully slow, she could hear her name being yelled. The voice was raspy, deep, and close.

Though she had been trying to continually move in the same direction, she realized that the terrain was becoming less familiar to her. The thought had just crossed the back of her mind when the air drastically cooled. She could see ahead in the dark just enough to realize that the ground ended only a number of feet away. Going against her desperate survival instinct, she stopped. She threw her hands out to grip a tree nearby, as the momentum still threw her body forward, even when her legs stopped.

Breathing so hard she knew there was no way to stay quiet, she let go of the branch and took a few shaky steps to look over the cliff. It was a terrifying drop, and she could see nothing below but darkness. She could hope that there was water, but if there was any, she had no idea how deep it might be. If it was water, she could swim— if it was land, she could run— but she could do neither if her body were to suddenly meet any hard resistance.

Hearing her name shouted again made her jump, and she looked frantically to the right and the left. She could follow the cliff's edge in either direction, but it offered her no protection. She would be moving fast again, and with no light; it would be too easy for her to mistake her footing, and suddenly meet air instead of rock. The cliff edge was a risk, but she did not have the time to weigh her options. She had to _move._

She turned back to the trees and took a quick step when she focused on the pair of eyes trained on her. They were set at least two feet higher than her own, spaced about a foot apart from each other. If it weren't for the familiarity with these eyes that she so resented, she wouldn't have noticed the watery glint that gave them away. She thought she would feel fear or rage when she was caught in that gaze again, that she would be driven to _some _action, but she was frozen.

She strained to push herself back into action, however futile that may be. Through a darkness that seemed so thick, she could sense, rather than see, that he was reaching for her. The terror that gripped her then was all she needed to act. With the same foot that she had stepped forward on only a second ago, she pushed herself backwards with as much force as she could. Going backwards, she didn't know she had made it over the edge of the rocks until she heard him yell out in rage. He hated to lose, and they both realized he had lost her. Falling through the cold air, she knew this escape was the best option she had, regardless of what lay beneath her.


	2. Chapter 2

She walked through a bustling port, trying not to look as lost as she was. Discreetly, she observed each ship that she passed, trying to find one she could board— seeing as she didn't carry any bit of any sort of currency.

After her backwards dive off the cliff, she _had _landed in water, which was more than she had the right to hope for. Though it was a pitch-black night, she was raised to be a strong swimmer, and was able to keep her head above the water and move herself until she began to feel the shore under her feet.

Another stroke of luck was the homes so nearby. It was not a village where she knew anyone, and no one recognized her, but after knocking at only two doors, she was hurried inside and was sat firmly by a small fire. The home was filled with a large family; the parents and five children. She was given a place to wash, a surprisingly plush place to sleep, and clothes that were only slightly too big. Early in the morning, before anyone woke, she left all the coins she had on the table where the mother had fed and fretted over her the night before. It wasn't much, but she had a feeling it was more than the family had seen in some time. Hesitantly leaving the home, she couldn't help but notice the looming cliffs, and she knew that if she had been able to see their height the night before, she likely would not have leapt.

Now finally looking as though she _hadn't _been running through trees and swimming in deep waters, she tried to find a ship that would be easy to board, one way or the other. She had to leave the planet, and felt the urgent need to do so quickly. Although she was not running, she _was _actively trying to get away.

Towards the end of the port, she saw one ship that looked particularly well-kept. As she got closer, trying to inconspicuously study it, she saw a creature that looked like a great brown bear, but walked with the ease and fluidity of a man. He was leaving the ship in what seemed like a great huff, but no one else on board seemed to notice. Deciding this was her opportunity; she pulled her elbows in tight to her sides and ran to the ship.

Hoping that no one noticed, she ran onto the ship deck. She looked around quickly, and saw no one looking her way. Making a hard left, she went into the first open doorway, and followed the stairs down. The lighting was dim, but her eyes adjusted quickly, and she realized that she had found refuge in a kitchen.

"Miss," she heard a voice somewhere behind her. The voice sounded as though it was making its way to her from a long tunnel, but as she spun on her heel she saw that the creature was already at the bottom of the stairs. He was at least two feet taller than her, and lanky, with all of his limbs looking as though they had been originally gummy and stretched out. His skin was a deep blue color, and speckled with yellow spots the size of her fist. His eyes were the shape of almonds, though much bigger, and the same yellow as the spots on his skin. He had a single braid of dark hair which was as thick as her forearm, and went halfway down his back. He wore dark brown pants, and a white shirt that hung loose on his thin body. "You look lost."

She knew she would be a fool to trust him so easily, even though he didn't look particularly threatening. Seeing as he had been perfectly civil with her, she figured friendliness was her best, and most convincing, card to play. Committing herself to the part of someone who _did _belong there, and was _not _terrified, she smiled sweetly at him and shrugged her shoulders.

"Not so long as this is the kitchen!"

He raised an eyebrow at her, which seemed to be a grand move on his face. "You're looking for the kitchen? I don't know that it will do you much good— word on deck is that the chef left the ship far behind him before he even opened a drawer. Something about living spaces not being up to his standards."

She took his nonchalant manner as a good sign. He seemed as though he felt no reason not to trust her— or he was being casually condescending as he prepared to toss her back onto the street. She had to think fast and not falter.

"Yes sir, I heard the same type of thing down on the streets. Word travels fast when a job opens up. I thought I might fill his spot."

The man chuckled shortly. "You don't look to be a girl scrambling for a job."

She suddenly felt subconscious about her looks. Although the coat she was given by the family was too big for her, it was in good shape. The top was large, though that was easily concealed by tucking it into the skirt she wore. Her boots, thankfully, fit her just fine, and like everything else she wore, they were in good condition. She should have thought to pull her hair back, if not cut it completely. It fell in waves of brown to her waist, giving the look of great care, no matter how little time she may pay attention to it. Besides a splatter of freckles across her nose, her skin was smooth and fair. She knew people always said her thick, dark lashes looked as though she has applied them—but surely even a girl who _was _scrambling for a job could have smooth skin and long lashes.

Only for three seconds, she was searching for a way to answer, until the man laughed again, as though he thought nothing of her speechlessness. "But who am I to question?" he asked, shrugging his great shoulders. "We'll have to check you in with Captain Hawkins. He'll want to clear anyone joining the crew." He turned his body slightly, and gestured up the stairs.

She smiled and stepped in line by him, and they walked back up the stairs. The smile was frozen on her face with such a fierceness, fueled by the same fear it was masking. This Captain would be the one to grant her safety on the ship, without realizing that he held that power.


	3. Chapter 3

"Your name, Miss?"

A _name_. She hadn't thought of a name to give. She had originally hoped to stay hidden until the ship landed somewhere new, never even speaking to anyone, much less give them a _name. _A false name would probably be safest. Could she think up a good false name quick enough to not be suspicious? Could she be convincing in her lie? She knew she was a horrible liar.

"Emaleen," she said, deciding the truth would be her best option. She looked to her escort to gauge his reaction, to see if he would catch her slight hesitation in answering, if there would be any flicker of recognition, or anything that would bring more attention to what she was doing. However, his reaction was minimal. Just a slight nod, acknowledging that she had answered him.

"It will be good if at least one person on the ship has a name to give to the captain. My name is Jalson. We'll let him believe we didn't just meet," he said, smiling at her.

Emaleen smiled back, feeling terrified. She had hoped Jalson would take the job of convincing the captain. She was no good at lying under typical circumstances, when she felt calm, and had committed only a minor transgression. But now, she felt time working against her. She could feel danger still coming for her, like a dark shadow cast by a cloud, creeping swiftly across the ground, heading her way. She felt that this was her last chance at security. If things didn't work, she was done. She would be out of options. She felt her heart bang against her chest, and her fingers twitched with anxiety. If she was kicked off the ship, maybe a heart attack would finish her off before she could be found.

"Captain Hawkins," Jalson called out, as his long strides slowed. Emaleen slowed down next to him, and felt like running in the opposite direction, but she knew she _had _to keep herself composed. This was her chance at safety, and no one would trust a fidgety girl who had showed up out of nowhere.

When the man Jalson spoke to turned around, Emaleen forgot her fear for a moment, and surprise took over. Firstly, the captain was _human. _Emaleen and her parents were certainly a minority on the planet, and she had grown up knowing very few who were human like her. The second thing she registered, which surprised her as well, was that he was _young. _Emaleen herself was 24, and this man couldn't even be five years older than she was. And he was handsome. _This _particular fact didn't shock Emaleen, but even with her high emotions, she recognized it. His kin was darkened slightly, touched by time in the sun. His brown hair was cut just long enough to be parted to one side. His blue eyes were bright and lively. He stood a few inches taller than Emaleen, and had a body built by years of work. He wore a uniform that was clean and polished; a white coat lined with a dark blue trim, a white shirt underneath, and dark blue slacks tucked into boots. He had a small gold hoop in his left ear; one small show of rebellion.

"This is Emaleen, Captain. She is to be the cook for the ship, if you'll allow to her as a replacement."

"A replacement?" Captain Hawkins asked, his thick eyebrows knitting together. "What happened to Chall? He was signed on to be the cook weeks ago."

"He was unhappy with his quarters, sir. They were not exactly what he had been expecting."

Captain Hawkins let out an exasperated huff, and if Emaleen wasn't as nervous as she was, she would have needed to fight off a smile. As much authority as he carried, and as well as he looked the part of a captain, he _was_ young, and was acting that part as well. When he turned to look at Emaleen, he looked serious, and Emaleen's thoughts of seeing him as a peer waivered greatly.

"How did you know to come on board as soon as you did? Chall couldn't have left the ship too long ago."

Emaleen took a breath and willed herself to at least _look _confident. "No, Captain, he left only a short while ago. But for those of us in the port looking for work, word travels quickly when a spot is open." She imagined this was true. And she had already told the lie to Jalson, so just repeating herself wasn't too difficult.

Captain Hawkins nodded, and Emaleen felt a small burst of relief. At least she hadn't opened her story with suspicion.

"Emaleen," he said, and Emaleen felt a small jolt, deciding it was a good sign that he cared to remember her name. She had interacted with others enough to know that if they didn't really care about you, your situation, or your story, they wouldn't bother with remembering your name. "You'll have to excuse my hesitation. I make sure I know who I let onto my ship before they're hired on."

"I understand that, Captain," she said, amazed at how calm her voice sounded, when he heart felt like a fluttering bird in its cage. "I've worked under others who felt the same." More amazement. She had never worked outside of her home, yet there she was, lying through her teeth. However, claiming experiencing seemed like it would help her case. "I would be happy to answer your questions. And if you'll let me stay, I can just cook and keep to myself."

She wanted to say more; promise him that she was trustworthy, that she wouldn't cause any trouble; tell him if he didn't let her stay, she was dead for sure. But all of that seemed like a bit much. If she over spoke, she felt it would seem as though she was trying to cover her trail before he even questioned her, and that would surely seem suspicious. Captain Hawkins opened his mouth to speak, as something small and pink appeared over his head. Emaleen's mouth fell open slightly in surprise, and as fixed as she was on their conversation, with all the importance it carried, she felt her attention completely switch to the blob floating above his head. The Captain noticed her shift in attention and looked up, just as the thing let out a rolling chirp that sounded almost like a bird, and flew at her.

Emaleen gasped and leaned back slightly in surprise as the thing rubbed itself under her chin, as a pet would. Jalson let a small chuckle escape, and she heard the Captain say "Morph…" in an exasperated tone. The thing flew into Emaleen's line of vision and smiled, chirping again. Realizing that no one else was regarding the thing at a threat, Emaleen laughed at its behavior, and it flew back to her, brushing across her forehead, pushing a lock of her hair back. She heard it make a noise that sounded like a childlike "Ooooo," as it went to her shoulder blade and began to explore her thick hair.

The captain laughed and shook his head. "He won't hurt you. He's just… friendly."

Emaleen smiled timidly as she felt her hair going in different directions as the thing burrowed through her hair. "No, I can't imagine he would. I don't mind."

Captain Hawkins sighed, and his face sobered again as he looked at Emaleen. "He's a pretty good judge of character. And we _will _need a cook. I suppose anyone we take on board now will need to be a quick decision. We have plenty of food and supplies in the kitchen below—is there anything else you'll need?"

"No, Captain," she responded, feeling the knot in her chest loosen. "Thank you."

He nodded his head to her with a slight smile. "Then we'll be off in just a few minutes. Jalson?"

Jalson stepped next to Captain Hawkins, and the two walked off. The creature—Morph—which had still been busying itself in her hair, darted after the two of them, and perched on the captain's shoulder, who reached up to stroke him lightly. When they were far enough away, seeing to something on the ship, Emaleen let out an explosion of breath. She had made it. She was safe, and she would be getting further away from the planet soon. She reached up and held a necklace she wore—a small golden ball on a simple chain—and absentmindedly rolled it between two fingers. Looking over the rail of the ship, beyond the port, she could see the hills that were thick and green. She had no reason to stay anymore, and knew it would be best not to, but she was still leaving home. It saddened her.

Emaleen let go of her necklace and turned from the rail of the ship. Not wanting to be in anyone's way as the ship took off, and feeling slightly exposed to be so out in the open, she made her way down to the kitchen.


	4. Chapter 4

Emaleen stood over the sink in the ship's kitchen, scrubbing pots and dishes from the dinner that had finished not too long ago. Focusing on the water, the pool of bubbles, and the plate and washcloth in her hands, she could imagine that she was at any sink, cleaning a load of dishes. She had done so many times at home. Looking intently into the water, watching her hand make circular motions with the cloth, she could easily believe she was at home, cleaning the dishes after a meal with her family, finishing the task quickly so she could accompany her mother on their grand piano—

Emaleen did not realize how deep she was in her fantasy until the sound of boots on the wooden stairs behind her snapped her back to reality. Stifling a gasp in her throat, she let go of the plate she had been holding, letting it sink slowly through the water in the sink, and grabbed a knife she had washed and rinsed moments before. She believed she was safe enough on the ship, but recent events had turned her to err on the side of caution. When the person descending the stairs came fully into view, she realized it was the captain. Though she felt she could trust him, the knife in her hands was all that kept her from feeling entirely vulnerable. She picked up a dry washcloth to appear as though she was drying the knife, instead of keeping it close as a weapon.

A few steps after reaching the bottom of the stairs, entering the dining area, Captain Hawkins looked up at Emaleen. If he noticed anything strange about what she was holding, he did not bring it to attention. He smiled at her, and casually stopped a few paces away.

"I'm glad you found things in the kitchen alright," he said, rubbing the back of his neck with one hand. Emaleen realized then that the smile was sheepish. "I should have had someone help you become acquainted with it."

Emaleen stared at him for a moment, her mouth slightly agape in surprise. She had seen him change from Strong Captain to Young Man quickly before, but this slight guilt was something knew, and surprising in its own.

"It's—fine," she said, finally finding her voice. "One kitchen is not so different from the other." Her words were nothing short of the truth; she thought back to how easily she had just lost herself in the fantasy of another kitchen.

The captain's smile relaxed slightly and he nodded at her. His eyes drifted to the sink behind her. Emaleen was glad that she had so few dishes left—_she _knew she was a hard worker, but _he _did not. Her relief was partly due to pride, and partly due to fear of being banished at the first sign of trouble.

"My first work on a ship was as a cabin boy," he said, gesturing to the dishes at her back and wincing slightly. "I had never seen so many ravaged dishes at once. Felt like it took forever to get through them."

Emaleen chuckled once before she could stop herself, or acknowledge the chuckle before it came. "I'm afraid your crew must have been a wild bunch. These haven't been so bad."

Hawkins' eyes widened and he inhaled through his nose, nodding his head several times. He put his hands in his pockets and rocked back slightly on his heels. "Wild. That's an understatement. They were a bunch of pirates."

Emaleen's mouth fell open again, this time with an audible click. She stared at the captain, waiting for him to fill her in on the joke—and then realizing there was none.

"Pirates… they were… but how did you…"

Hawkins smirked and removed one hand from his pocket to rake it through his short hair, shrugging. "That's a story for another time, I think." He clasped both hands behind his back, standing straight, looking his part of a commanding captain again. "Now, you'll have to forgive me… I know I should have had someone show you where you'll sleep. According to Jalson, that was enough to drive our other cook away; it would have been fair to give you the same chance, but I honestly forgot. I'll show you know, and hopefully you won't think it's too unbearable."

Emaleen gulped as the captain made a gesture with his hand, clearly wishing to lead her away from the sink. She couldn't very well take the knife with her and still expect him to view it innocently. She turned and set it on the counter, and had to force herself to keep from trembling as she let go of the knife and turned from it. Turning back to the captain, she smiled, hoped she looked sincere and casual, and followed his lead.

Emaleen was surprised when they did not make for the stairs, but turned around the pantry, which was to one side of the sink. The area was pushed so far back from everything that Emaleen had failed to notice it earlier. The captain rounded a turn that Emaleen would not have even noticed was there, and disappeared behind the pantry. Blinking in surprise, Emaleen followed him. The area which he led her to was small, and, if Emaleen was correct, was directly behind the backsplash wall at the sink. She was far more grateful for the discreet and private area than she was concerned with its size.

She noticed that the captain was watching her, gauging her reaction to the space. She smiled at him, and he smiled back softly, looking relieved.

"This is just fine," she said, running her hand along one of the walls. She noted a thick white sheet folded on the floor. "I don't see what the fuss was about."

"This space was originally going to be for storage," Hawkins said, looking around the area. "Then I figured it might be a good idea to have the extra space, so we switched a few things around. The cook came on board, and told me he didn't want to sleep with the crew, so I had Jalson show him this space. Next thing I knew," he paused and looked at her, shrugging. "You were here. I'm starting to think nothing would have been good enough for him except for my cabin."

Emaleen laughed at this, again, surprising herself. 24 hours ago, she would not have expected to find herself laughing any time soon. The thought caused her laugh to trail off, and she cleared her throat, grabbing the small ball on her necklace between two fingers. The captain cleared his throat as well, and stood up straighter, looking again as though he was guilty of something. He gestured quickly to the opening of the small space, and Emaleen left, hearing his footsteps again as he followed her out.

"I'll let you finish your work," he said, inclining his head towards the sink once they were within view of it again. "The blanket back there will be enough to keep you warm; it won't get too cold down here." He opened his mouth, looking as though he wanted to say something, but then closed it again.

"I'm sure it will be fine," Emaleen said, slowly. She did not want the silence to continue, but also did not know what she should say to break it. "Thank you, Captain."

He smiled, looking content to forget whatever he had previously thought to say. "Thank _you,_" he said, but Emaleen was not sure for what. "Have a good sleep." He turned quickly on his heel, and walked back up the stairs.

If Emaleen had not felt so suddenly tired, she would have given more energy to trying to understand why the captain behaved in such an anxious way. Instead, she washed the last load of dishes, and went back to her discreet space. She groggily pulled off her boots, unfolded the blanket and laid it out to for a makeshift bed, folded under her, with enough of the sheet to still cover herself in. She did not fight it when her eyelids became heavy, and quickly fell to sleep.

…

Jim had been above deck for some time after he left the kitchen. He looked over the railing of the ship for a while, looking pensively into the empty space. He circled the mast, checking the lifelines which he took personal responsibility over. With the sails down, floating in a soft current which would carry them through the night, the ship needed no one to steer it. He stood by the wheel for a while, looking ahead in the direction they were going. With no more reason to stay out longer, he resigned to retire to his cabin for the night.

Crossing the deck, Jim thought he heard a noise, which caused him to stop and cock his head to one side, listening. It was not the usual creaks of the ship which had caught his attention, but he could not place what the sound was. After a moment, Jim prepared to move, thinking the noise _must _have been a creaking of the ship which sounded unfamiliar in the silence. Before he could take another step, he heard the noise again.

Whether it was because he was listening intently, was not moving, or the volume of the noise had grown, he heard it without question this time, and could place it immediately. It was a whimper.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Followed by the second noise, the whimper that Jim distinctly heard, the same voice cried out. He did not know if the noise was produced out of fear or pain, but it was undeniable distress. He knew without a doubt that it came from the kitchen, and the only person it could belong to was Emaleen. Without hesitation, he pulled a gun from his belt, and sprinted to the kitchen. Jumping the last few steps, he cursed himself for trusting _any _crew, for thinking the space he had told Emaleen to sleep in was safe, and for expecting that a young woman and a stranger would be left alone.

Deciding not to call out to alert the threat, heart pounding from fear of what he would find and anxiously regarding what he had to do, he rounded the corner and entered the space that he had given to Emaleen. He fixed his gun straight ahead, his finger on the trigger. The gun, however, was pointing at the wall which was across from him. He looked down and saw Emaleen on the floor. Alone and asleep.

As he looked down at her, letting out a shaky breath, caught somewhere between relief and confusion, he slowly lowered his gun. She was lying on her back, the blanket twisted around her legs. Her brow was knit tightly together, and both of her hands were in tight fists. As he looked at her, eyes wide, she whimpered again, and Jim realized the only threat which plagued her was the one in her dreams. He stowed his gun back in his belt, and feeling unsure of what to do, took a step back and turned to leave. To leave her at the mercy of whatever foe she imagined seemed unfair, but he felt it would be wrong to be the one to wake her. He was hardly more than a stranger, and upon being shaken awake, his face might scare her as much as anything she dreamt of.

Guiltily deciding to leave, Jim heard Emaleen say, in a soft voice, "No". Surprised that he had woken her, and without thinking, Jim turned around and asked "What?"

Only a moment after the word escaped him, he realized Emaleen was not speaking to him, but to someone in her sleep.

"Don't hurt them."

Jim's mouth dropped open at the sound of her voice. Her words were jumbled and breathless, so it was clear that she was still asleep. Asleep and scared of whatever she was seeing, all of her defenses were down, and her voice was full of fear and vulnerability. Thinking that her request was in response to the question that Jim had let slip, that it had somehow broken into her subconscious, he spoke again, deliberately for the effect of reaching her dream.

"I won't," he said softly, and watched her closely. The effect his words had on her was small, but as he was watching her so closely, he noticed. Her eyebrows lifted slightly, as though surprised by the response. Her face slowly relaxed, and her fingers, balled into fists, twitched and slowly loosened.

Jim waited and watched her for a few more moments. He still felt confused, and slightly guilty, though he could do nothing to fight off who haunted her dreams. However, her face and hands continued to relax, and the only other sound she uttered was a soft sigh. Believing that her sleep was safe again, whether it was because his words had soothed her, or because the dream had ended, Jim decided he could leave. He left the kitchen, looking around for any tangible threats before he went back up the stairs.

…..

Early the next morning, Emaleen woke with a start. Lying on her back, she stared at the ceiling above her. She had read stories where people awoke in the morning, after some traumatic occurrence, in a new place, and looked wildly around until they remembered what had happened, and where they were.

That was not the case with Emaleen. She knew exactly where she was, and remembered every detail of what had happened in the last few days. She did not struggle to remember all that had happened, but it was not so easy to come to terms with it all. It was a reality very different from what she had known before, and in this moment, she did not know how to accept it and still get on with her day.

Breathing a hefty sigh, she sat up. She had come into some good fortune, being allowed a spot on the ship without raising suspicions. Cooking was her role to fill, and it would keep her mind off of things more than staring at a wooden ceiling would. She folded the sheet, and her coat, which she had used as a pillow. She slipped back into her boots, and left her small room. Once back into the dining area of the ship, she turned and looked to where her space was. She was amazed at how concealed it was, and wondered how many members of the crew actually knew it was there.

In the kitchen, she quickly washed fruit and set dried meat out on the long tables. She heard voices on the deck above, and knew that the crew would soon be down to the kitchen, hungry for a meal to begin their day. Before cooking dinner the night before, she had surveyed the full stock of food. She was surprised that the crew was not already being fed gray, tasteless slop, as she had heard was the case among ships. Whoever had prepared the kitchen with food did so with attention and care.

Setting down the last bowl of fruit on the table, Emaleen saw Jalson walking down the stairs. Once his tall body was completely in view, on next to the bottom step, his eyes found hers quickly, and he smiled.

"Miss Emaleen," he said, inkling his head. "It _is _good to see you this morning. I am glad to see that you have already gained control of the kitchens."

Emaleen was slightly surprised by his friendly manner, but it was no different than yesterday's. She felt herself smile back at him.

"It wasn't hard at all. I'm use to waking up early—to cook for a crew," she finished, feeling herself blushing slightly. She _was _use to waking up early, but it was to tend to her garden before the sun became too hot. She willed her cheeks to cool, knowing that she blushed whenever she lied, and hoping Jalson would not have noticed.

He simply grabbed a piece of the fruit with his long fingers and took a great bite of it. "That's fortunate," he said, after he swallowed; another grand gesture on the body where even his neck seemed elongated. "The days on a ship begin early and end late."

Emaleen was then aware of more members of the crew talking on deck, and figured they would quickly be filling the kitchen. Quickly, Emaleen spoke.

"I want to thank you for yesterday," she said. "Helping me to persuade the captain. I very much appreciate your help in being allowed on the ship."

Jalson winked at her as other crew members began to fill the dining area. "I was more than happy to help. It was important that you got on the ship—I was only doing my small part."

Jalson turned to leave then, slipping past the others. Emaleen was surprised that he would have noticed how important it was to her that she be let on the ship, but she did not let herself think on it for long. She was a bad liar, and that surely went hand-in-hand with being a poor actress. She only hoped that Jalson did not think it was anything more than needing a job, but she told herself that if he was at all suspicious, he would not have helped.

Taking a large plate from the table that had already been emptied, Emaleen turned to take it to the sink. Hearing a distant noise, not quite registering what it could be, she gasped deeply as she felt something softly hit the back of her head. After only a moment of confusion, and just a twinge of fear, Emaleen recognized the chirping noise of the captain's pink pet.

"Oh my," she said softly, still surprised by the greeting. Feeling it burrow through her hair again, she turned her head to look at her shoulder, she caught sight of it. Realizing it had her attention, it fluidly moved to perch on her shoulder. Emaleen could not help but laugh as it stared at her with its large eyes and animated smile. Emaleen grabbed a piece of fruit and sliced a small chunk out of it. She held the bit between her fingers, and tentatively held it in front of the thing.

"Do you… eat?" she asked it. Realizing that she expected it either would not eat her offering, or would not respond, she was surprised when it quickly reached forward with its small arms and took the fruit. As it ate quickly, she took another slice of the fruit and held it between her fingers, waiting for it to be ready for the next bit.

"He'll keep going until he's close to bursting, if he gets the chance."

Emaleen turned around, recognizing the captain's voice. She had not realized the captain was even in the room. It was her turn to smile guiltily, as he had last night.

"I'm sorry, I wasn't even sure he would eat in the first place," she said, shrugging. As she moved, unintentionally raising the piece of fruit, she saw as Morph darted down to her hand, as though he knew his chances of enjoying the fruit would be limited. He grabbed the food, and in the same movement, flitted up to the captain's shoulder, eating happily as he was given a reproachful look.

The captain opened his mouth to say something, but was interrupted when he was called for from the deck. He smiled apologetically at Emaleen and excused himself. When he left, Emaleen let out a small breath and leaned against the sink. Though tentatively, she was comfortable with the captain. It was not, however, without reservations. She could feel her apprehension relieve itself the further she travelled, but she felt it would be foolish to completely trust that she was safe. As she cleaned more dishes from the quickly thinning dining area, she told herself that after the room was clean again, she would venture above deck, and see for herself just how far she was from the danger.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

After the kitchen was clean again, Emaleen went up the stairs to go back on deck. The closer she got to the deck, the more she was aware of having attached an idea of safety with her place down in the kitchen. It was enclosed, isolated, and secure. The more she thought like that, the stronger her urge became to hide herself back in the kitchen. However, breathing deeply, she let go of the railing and stepped onto the deck.

The only time Emaleen had been on the deck before, her nerves were wound too tightly to take in much of anything. Now, even though she felt nervous, she did not feel particularly afraid, and she enjoyed taking in the details of the ship. It was large and sturdy, but humble in its design. The wood was a dark, rich brown, and when she ran her hand over it, it felt smooth and strong. She walked to one of the railings and looked over the edge. She didn't know a thing about how the ships worked, creating a space of gravity and breathable air. Now, her first time on one, she figured ignorance was bliss. The less she knew about it, the less she could worry over possible complications.

Despite what she was lying to make everyone on the ship believe, Emaleen was away from the planet she knew for the first time. After looking at the make of the ship, she rested her arms on one of the outer railings and looked out into the vast space which they were sailing through. There was what looked like scattered colorful wisps of clouds. As opposed to what she thought as a young girl, there were not handfuls of stars nearby to grab. She did not know how far off any of the stars were, but she could see plenty from where she was, and she thought they were just as beautiful as they were back home. If she could see her home planet now, she couldn't tell that she was looking at it. She realized with a bit of relief that she had left it far behind.

Simply admiring what was around her turned to thinking back on all that had happened over the past several days. She had always been good with change, but to be able to function as she was, in the face of all that she had endured, she figured she must be in some shock. No matter how apparent the truth of all that had happened was, it felt almost like a dream. Like some game she was playing, and she was only going through the motions. She had had no time to grieve her losses; as soon as escape became an option, she immediately barreled into that course of action. She had kicked into a pure survival mode that she never before knew she had. Feeling a great lump forming in her throat, she squeezed her eyes shut and willed herself to keep her composure; at least while she was out in the open, and surrounded by a crew.

When Emaleen heard someone behind her clear their throat, she made sure any signs of distress were gone from her face. She turned to face the captain, who had been standing behind her. He had his hands deep in the pockets of his coat, and looked at her with a hesitant smile. It was a moment, like others, that Emaleen felt like she was in the company of a peer, and not the captain of a ship. It made it easier for her to feel comfortable with him when he wasn't actively filling his role of authority.

"Can I join you?" he asked, gesturing to the railing with his hands still in his pockets. Emaleen smiled, charmed by his casual sincerity. She could tell that he was genuinely asking for permission; if she turned down his request, he would leave. Realizing that gave her a greater desire to have his company.

"Yes, please," she responded, as she gestured to the space next to her. His smile broadened slightly, and he walked next to her. He took his hands from his pockets and leaned on the railing as she had been. As she leaned against the railing next to him again, he took in deep breath. After a moment of silence, he turned to her. He still had the relaxed smile on his face, but his eyes were squinted slightly as he looked at her.

"How did you sleep?" he asked. With the studious way he was looking at her, Emaleen assumed that she had circles under eyes, or some other telltale sign that her sleep had not been peaceful. In truth, it had not been. She had had vivid dreams of moving quietly through her dark house, looking for her parents. Dreams of running desperately through a forest, where the roots kept reaching up to pull her down. Of swimming in a large body of water, trying to keep her head above water, without in shore in sight. In all of the dreams, she was being pursued by something dark and sinister. Though she never saw it, she knew it was never far.

"I slept fine," she lied. If she admitted to a bad sleep, the captain might ask her why, and she would have to create a more elaborate lie to answer that. "A new ship is always something to get used to, I suppose," she said, shrugging. She hoped that if his questions were fueled by her appearance, he would believe that her problem sleeping was nothing more than acquainting herself with new surroundings. To her relief, he nodded his head, seeming to accept her answer.

After a moment of considering her response, he tilted his head and looked at her again.

"Emaleen, why are you looking for work on a ship? Don't take this the wrong way, but you're young to be on your own, from ship to ship, aren't you?"

Emaleen laughed and looked at him, somewhat reproachfully.

"Captain, I don't think you can be much older than me. And aren't _you _a little young to be doing what you're doing?"

He laughed and ran his hand through his hair. "Ok, I get it. That's a fair point. What about your family? It's hard to be away for so long sometimes."

Emaleen was afraid his questions would lead to her family. Emaleen swallowed hard and looked off the side of the ship, nodding. "It is hard to be away from them," she answered, her voice soft. "But I'm kind of on my own now." Emaleen tried to say something else, searching for words that would not leave her explanation so feeling so heavy, and sounding so serious. Admitting this out loud was painful, and it took more out of her than she would have expected. Out of the corner of her eye she saw the captain looking at her, a concerned look on his face. She couldn't handle talking about her family now, she forced a smile on her face and turned her attention back to the captain.

"What about you?" she asked. "Is it hard to be away from your family?"

It took a moment for the concern to leave his face, but it eventually did. He nodded and smiled again.

"My mom's back on Montressor. She runs an inn there that keeps her busy. And she's got some good friends there. I don't worry about her too much."

"Do you go back and visit her often?" Emaleen asked, both sincerely interested, and with a desire to keep the conversation focused somewhere other than on herself.

"I do, when I've got a long enough time between trips. It's good to be back home. The planet we just left, we were there for a few days. It's nice to have your feet on the ground for a bit. But it's not home."

Emaleen nodded, feeling a small lump in her throat forming again. She wasn't sure if she would ever see her home planet again… and didn't know that any place would ever quite feel like home.

The captain took a deep breath and stood up straight, smiling down at Emaleen.

"You went down to the kitchen pretty fast yesterday," he said. "Would you like me to show you around the ship a little?"

Emaleen accepted the offer, genuinely curious to see more of the ship. The captain pointed out to her where his cabin was, which was near the wheel. He took her to that, showing her how the boat was steered, and how different notches could add bursts of speed to the ship. He showed her where the rest of the crew slept, and explained to her what different parts of the ship controlled, or supported. Much of it was beyond her understanding, but she enjoyed seeing everything anyway. While they walked around the ship, they were given courteous nods from the rest of the crew, who were busy with their own jobs. When the captain was asked to study a map of their course with Jalson, Emaleen excused herself to prepare for the crew's dinner. For the first time then, Emaleen noticed the captain eating with his crew, and saw him look her way more than once. They spoke very little, however, and he left with a simple smile and a "good night".

After the dining area was clear and the kitchen was clean, Emaleen went to her small bed. Under the cover, she took her coat, which she used as a pillow, and buried her face into it to cry. Trying to stay as quiet as she could, sobs shook her body as she mourned her losses. Her home, her garden, her piano, her mother and her father—things and people she loved so dearly, which she would never see again. For the first time since childhood, Emaleen cried herself to sleep.

Unknown to her, her room was again visited by Jim, when she cried out in her sleep. He was more prepared to act this time, and was at the entrance to her space quicker than the night before. He answered her cries with a soft "Everyone's fine," and stayed until her breathing slowed and her fists uncurled.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

In the next week and a half, the only person Emaleen spent more time with than the captain was Morph. She could almost always count on Morph finding her while she was preparing food. He would happily eat the slivers she gave him, and would reduce himself to a puddle of tears when she would not give him more. One evening he took her soup ladle and flew it around the dining area and half of the deck before he gave it back, relenting it only when she surrendered a large slice of fruit to him. One morning she woke up to see him staring at her from where he hovered a foot above her face, his eyes more than twice their normal size. He would often burrow himself deep in her hair, and stay there so long that she would forget it was where he was.

When she was not cooking or cleaning, she was often with the captain. Even when she _was _cooking or cleaning, it was not unusual for him to be found down in the kitchen. She saw more of his transitions between Strong Captain and Young Man, but the only time they happened in her presence was when he was called away by someone. She made it a point to be selective in the times she was with him, for fear of it somehow affecting how he was viewed on the ship.

He showed her how to safely climb up the bowsprit, and she taught him how to whistle like a bird. He explained to her about how he spent three years building his ship, and she told him about the necklace her parents gave her when she turned 20, and how she had worn it every day since. He gave her the story of the cyborg who changed his life and the pirates he fought, and she confided that she had lost both of her parents "not too long ago". He asked her to call him Jim, and she agreed, but only when the crew wasn't around to hear.

On a day when Jim had been particularly busy, Emaleen had only seen him at breakfast. He was called to come on deck by one of his crew members before he had finished his meal, and Emaleen knew by the sense of urgency portrayed, she would not be seeing him for a while. She had been busying herself in the dining area for hours, giving it more than its normal clean, when Jim ran a few stairs down and called out to her.

"Get up here; you've got to see this!"

There was such excitement in his voice, Emaleen dropped her rag immediately and headed towards the deck. Once he was sure that she was coming, he ran back up, with Emaleen following close behind.

When she reached the deck, she gasped, looking around. Her quick run slowed to a walk which was barely moving. It looked to her as if the entire crew was on deck, taking in the spectacle. Even Jalson, who was steering the ship, looked around, bemused. Jim had leapt onto a railing and was leaning out over the ship, holding onto a beam for support, looking down.

Wisps of bright blue and deep red clouds breezed quietly over the deck of the ship. Emaleen gasped softly as one blew into her abdomen, but she felt no pressure from it and it parted as it hit her, as though it had no more substance than vapor. Looking around more, her mouth slightly open in awe, she saw small flecks of white moving in the same direction as the clouds. Emaleen reached her hand out into the path of a cluster that was moving by, and when they collided with her hand, they were soft, and gave only the slightest amount of pressure when they touched her. She laughed out loud when the cluster swirled up her arm, tickling where they brushed against her skin, before moving on along their path. Turning to watch the cluster float on, Emaleen saw that Jim had come down from the railing and was standing next to her, smiling.

"What _is _all this?" Emaleen asked, laughing. "Where did this come from?"

"There was a star not too far from here that had gone supernova," Jim said. "We had to make sure our course was going to be far enough from it… do you remember me telling you about that last one?"

Emaleen nodded, recalling Jim's story with the pirates. Their close call with the star had sounded terrifying; something she could only imagine. She was glad it had been avoided this time, and that she had never even been aware of the risk.

"Well," Jim continued, "We got far enough away from this one. This is the aftermath now. Just clouds and dust, really… but it sure makes for a good show."

After taking in the phenomena for a few more minutes, the crew eventually got back to their jobs, but Emaleen and Jim stayed out in the small storm. Jim swiped his hands across the railing, stirring the white flecks back into motion, and Emaleen swung her hands through the clouds to watch the slow moving colors spring to life and twirl in the flow of air she created. When the clouds thinned, the two of them climbed the bowsprit. They stayed on the beam and talked for a while more, until Jim declared that he had to get back to work, or risk looking lazy. Emaleen laughed and agreed that she needed to start preparing for dinner if she was to expect keeping her place on the ship. Making their way off the beam, Jim grabbed her hand to help her cross, instead of keeping his hand on her back as he normally did. He let go as soon as she was firmly back on deck, and he made no mention of it, but Emaleen was still very aware of the touch, and the fact that it was the first one of its kind.

Emaleen had allotted the time just before she went to sleep to think about the things she stowed away during the day. She knew that after dinner was finished, after the kitchen was clean and she said goodnight, she would be able to be alone with her thoughts, unafraid of being interrupted. As she lay down, she thought about how she had felt during the storm. For a good amount of time, she felt so carefree. She had not felt like that since before she left her home planet, and she didn't know then if she would ever be feeling that way again. She felt a slight twinge of guilt at the nonchalance, and wondered if she would ever regard such things without a second thought again. She thought about her time on bowsprit with Jim, and how comfortable she had come to be with him. Since her time on the ship, they had talked about miniscule things, and topics of great importance. She wondered if she would ever feel able to tell him the truth of what happened. She questioned whether or not she was putting too much weight on the fact that he took her hand, and could have laughed at herself for wondering over such a thing. She thought it would be much longer before such things became important to her again— if they ever would. With all of these thoughts buzzing about her mind, Emaleen fell asleep.

…..

Slowly, Emaleen's dreams had started to change. She knew now, as she had for the past couple of nights, that she was having a dream, because a voice somewhere told her so. She never did find who the voice belonged to; the dreams dissolved before she could. Instead of dreams of rushing through her house trying to find her parents and avoiding being found, she sought only the voice. Most nights it would drift to her and assure her that everything was fine, and eventually her dreams lost their feeling of dread and danger. She stopped feeling scared in her dreams, and felt only curious instead.

Tonight's dream, walking through her house, she had yet to hear the voice. Some far off, logical part of her mind realized that she had not called out in fear, and perhaps that was why the voice had not come to her. Though her house was dark, it was familiar and comforting, and feeling no fear, she set off to try and find the voice.

In her otherwise silent dream, a small creak on the stairs caught her attention. She meant to turn her head towards the noise quickly, in hopes of catching what had made the sound, but everything in the dream was suddenly slowed. She was able to turn her head just enough to see a dark form leap from the stairs and barrel into her.

Emaleen awoke with a loud gasp, flinging her eyes open as her head smacked into a wall with force. Disoriented and frightened, she realized she _had _been thrown, and had hit the wall with her whole body. With breath and a scream caught in her throat, she pushed herself halfway up with shaking arms, looking for what had thrown her. With great terror, she could feel the presence of someone else. She curled her legs up, as far away from the opening of her space as she could, and forced herself to focus on seeing who else was there.

Jim was on the floor, against the same wall as she was. His breath whistled between his teeth as he let out a sharp hiss of pain, holding his hand against his temple. Grimacing, he looked up and locked eyes with Emaleen. Still gripped with fear, she tried to force words out to ask him what was happening, when, with a loud boom, the ship shook violently and they were both thrown across the floor.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

Emaleen landed against the far wall, with Jim just a few feet from her. After the boom that had rocked the ship, there was a continuous roar coming through the walls. This time, being awake for the jolt, she was slightly more prepared, and was able to keep her head from hitting the wall again. Jim threw his arms out and caught himself against the wall, and when the ship stopped shaking, he stood up, keeping one hand on the wall for support. Emaleen heard the crew shouting above them as Jim reached down to her and helped her to stand.

"Are you hurt?" he shouted, looking her over. Her fear had not subsided, and Jim looked almost as frantic as she felt. Besides a tight stiffness in her back, and the beginnings of a headache, she didn't feel hurt anywhere, and decided nothing had been greatly injured. Even the growing spot of pain in the back of her head could not be as bad as Jim's, whose forehead had a large spot that was already turning red.

Emaleen shook her head, noting that the movement didn't make anything worse. "I'm fine! What's happening?"

Jim shook his head, and with one hand on the wall and the other tightly holding hers, he led her out of her room. They moved quickly through the dining room, towards the stairs.

"I have no idea!" he shouted to her over his shoulder. "I was on deck just a few minutes ago, and everything was fine!"

Though they moved fast, the trek through the dining room never seemed longer to Emaleen. She looked quickly from left to right, jumping at each shadow that presented itself. Jim, who had just reached the stairs, towing her behind, didn't notice.

Climbing the stairs, they let go of each other, to hold to the rail tightly with both hands. There hadn't been another large jolt, but the ship still vibrated around them. Emaleen reached the top of the stairs two steps behind Jim, but before she could set foot on the deck, he threw out an arm to keep her back.

Misshapen rocks—some as large as she was—hurtled dangerously close to the ship. One smaller rock streaked across their heads, and the two ducked down instinctively. Emaleen watched as it hit the floor of the quarterdeck and bounced off, leaving a gash in the wooden boards. The ship trembled when it was hit, and Emaleen realized that the two booms before were other rocks hitting the ship. She worried over the state of the ship, wondering at the damage that must have been caused by an impact strong enough to throw her. Each rock that flew by cut through the constant roar with a rumble of its own. The crew was spilling out onto the deck from their quarters, running to secure themselves with a lifeline, and darting around the deck of the ship. She saw Jalson at the wheel, straining to turn it and making adjustments with the notches that altered the speed of the ship. For a moment, Emaleen felt relieved that it was only the rocks that were attacking, but the feeling was fleeting as she watched another rock that flew by, barely miss the mast.

"Emaleen!" Jim shouted, and Emaleen turned her attention to him. She could see by the tilt of his brow that he was concerned, but his eyes showed a fierce determination. "I need you to run with me! Stay _right _on me, got it?"

Emaleen barely gave him a speechless nod before he grabbed her by the arm and ran towards the mast where the lifelines were tied. The rumble of a hurtling rock caught her attention, and Emaleen looked for it on her left, still running. She called out a warning to Jim, who yelled back "I know!", and only ran faster. They made it out of the course of the rock, which whizzed by their heads, but touched nothing on the ship.

Reaching the mast, Jim quickly spun Emaleen so that she was between him and the mast, and immediately tied a lifeline around her waist. Emaleen tried to watch how he moved and pulled the rope, but his fingers moved to fast for her to follow. After giving the rope a tug around her waist, and testing the strength of it at the mast, he began to tie his own.

"You need to stay _right here_," he shouted, giving his lifeline a final tug. "Get down low, hold on to the mast, and stay where you are!"

As she crouched down as he instructed, a frightened looking Morph darted out of his coat pocket and disappeared into the pocket of her skirt. She watched Jim as he ran from the mast, shouting instructions to his crew. The ship was alive with what seemed like nothing more than frenzied scurrying to Emaleen, but she saw that they were communicating, and seemed to be following Jim's orders. He was engulfed in the activity, and Emaleen realized, even in the dangerous circumstance, he had full control of the crew.

One crew member suddenly appeared near her, pulling on ropes attached to the sails that Jim had ordered to be taken down.

"Didn't get as far from that exploding star as we would have liked!" he shouted down to her. "These are just some bigger parts of what it knocked around—Captain says we'll be out of it quick, just need to get through!"

Before she could even feel relief from the message he relayed, and large rock flew between the two of them. The crew member fell back, trying to clear it, and Emaleen turned and screamed, pressing herself against the mast. Whether he was brought to attention by her sudden movement, her scream, or the commotion, Morph poked his head from out of her pocket. The rock that Emaleen had just moved to avoid hit the railing just before clearing ship, rocking it to one side. Emaleen held tight to the mast, hearing the crew shout collectively. Morph, who had just crept out of her pocket halfway, was thrown out into the open air with a frightened trill. Just before he was out of her arm's reach, Emaleen dug her heels as firmly against the deck as she could, released the mast and clasped both hands around him.

Concerning herself with Morph, Emaleen didn't see the activity that was happening at the wheel. Jalson had finally regained control, and used great force to turn the wheel. At the same, he increased the speed of the ship, in the hopes of finding a quicker, shorter way out of the path of the rocks. The position which she was in cost her her balance, and having released her tight hold on the mast, she was thrown when the ship dipped and made its sudden turn. She heard the ship creek, and as it was pitched to one side, she tumbled across the deck. Though everything spun around her, she saw that she was being hurtled toward the outer railing of the ship. With the ship still tilted and her fast tumbling out of her control, she knew she would either be slammed against the sturdy beams, or slip through. Emaleen closed her eyes tightly, and hoped that she would either not break any bones upon impact with the beams, or that her lifeline would hold if she was thrown overboard.


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

Her eyes squeezed shut, Emaleen had no idea how close she was to the railing, but at the speed she was moving, she knew she would reach it very soon. Her hands were still clasped around Morph—if she lost him now, her whole ordeal would be for nothing—so she couldn't try to grab anything to stop herself. Sliding on her stomach, she felt her foot slip over the deck and into open space.

Suddenly, Emaleen felt a weight on top of her. For a horrifying moment, she thought she had slid right into the path of a flying rock and was being crushed—until she felt an arm wrap tightly around her waist. Her sliding came to a sudden stop, with only her feet having gone overboard. She felt her entire body covered, and knew that if a rock came now, she would not be the one to take the full force of the blow.

"I've got you now. We're almost out of this." Jim's strained voice spoke in her ear. Even if he had not spoken, Emaleen would have known it was him who came to her aid.

It wasn't until the roaring stopped after a minute or two that Emaleen felt she could even open her eyes. Though the ship hadn't been hit any more in that time, Jim remained on top of her, covering her body with his, one arm wrapped securely around her. When she felt _his _head lift, Emaleen raised hers slightly. She saw that he was tightly holding both of their lifelines with his free hand. After a moment, in which Emaleen assumed Jim was looking around, he released the lifelines and lifted himself off of her. He went to his knees at her side, and pulled her to hers.

"What happened to holding on to the mast?" he asked in a tone that sounded both worn and sarcastic.

Emaleen looked down at her clenched hands and slowly opened them. Morph was there, looking disoriented, but unharmed.

"He came out of my pocket. The ship got hit by one of those rocks and it threw him. I wasn't sure if he would be able to catch himself, so I grabbed him. Then the ship turned, and—well, that threw _me._"

Jim sighed deeply and looked down at Morph. He took him out of Emaleen's hands, and placed him on his shoulder.

"You're trouble," he muttered to Morph. "And lucky."

Jim turned back to Emaleen and looked her up and down. If she hadn't come to know him as well as she had recently, she would have been uncomfortable under the intensity of his stare.

"Are you hurt?" he asked. "At _all_?"

Emaleen shook her head, and Jim gave her a disbelieving look.

"I'm not," she said, trying to sound as convincing as she could. She felt shaken and exhausted, but unharmed. "I'm really not. My feet went through the beams; I didn't hit them. I think I tumbled in the air more than against the ship. And the only thing that hit me was you."

"Did _I _hurt you?" Jim asked, looking concerned.

"Not at all," Emaleen said sincerely. "How did you even get to me so fast? I know I couldn't have been moving for very long, and last I saw you, you were on the quarter deck."

Jim looked back to the quarter deck, as though he himself was trying to understand how everything had happened.

"You weren't moving very long at all. You were moving so fast," he said, looking back at her, his eyebrows drawn together and the corners of his lips turned down. "I jumped off the quarterdeck. I was close enough to you then, just a few steps away."

"But, the lifeline—" Emaleen started.

Jim shook his head, a set look on his face. "I didn't want to risk it."

Emaleen opened her mouth, but didn't know what she would say. She and Jim stared at each other for a moment, Emaleen still trying to quiet her thoughts down enough to form them into words. Before she even had the chance, Jalson called out to Jim from the wheel, asking what he and the crew were to do. Jim stood up and gently pulled Emaleen with him.

"We took hits on the deck, bow, and starboard side," Jim called back, standing tall. "I'll want a full report on the damage when I get back from taking Emaleen to her quarters."

"Aye, Captain," Jalson said, nodding his head once. As the crew began to stir around him to survey the ship, he did not break his stare from Jim and Emaleen.

Jim softly placed his hand on Emaleen's back, just long enough to turn her towards the kitchen, and the two crossed the deck to make their way down. Passing through the dining area in silence, Emaleen noted the kitchen, and was relieved that it looked unaffected. She was thankful that she had the mind to put all the dishes into sturdy cupboards, and had not left them out, which would have turned the kitchen into a scattered mess.

The walk to her room was silent. Emaleen did not know why Jim was being so quiet, but attributed his silence to fatigue, as she was also feeling its affects. She was still trying to organize the thoughts which seemed to be tumbling in her head. She knew that if she didn't say anything, he would leave. Their current silence was troubling enough for Emaleen, but it would have felt worse if they parted ways with nothing more than their habitual "goodnight".

"The lifeline probably would have held," Emaleen said abruptly, turning towards Jim. It was not where she had wanted to start the conversation, but it was the first thing that came out. "You always check the knots on the mast, _you _tied it onto me, and you double-checked its knot, like you check them every day."

Jim looked surprised at her words, but nodded slowly, as though hesitant to agree with where she might be going.

"And I only _might _have hit the beams," she continued. "And if I _did _hit them, it might not have been so bad. Maybe just bruises and sore spots."

"That's a lot you're leaving up to chance," he responded. "None of those things were for sure."

"Well you could have hurt yourself! Jumping off the quarterdeck with the ship veering like it was… grabbing on to me, we might not have stopped! And if one of those _rocks_ came at us! Jim, you were out in the open, and there would have been nothing to stop one of them from hitting you."

Jim tilted his head and gave her the slightest smile. "Those were just more chances. Nothing happened to either of us."

Her hands down by her sides, Emaleen clenched and opened her fists. It was a move she recognized, and knew she was subconsciously resorting to it because she was fighting to keep her emotions under control. She blinked twice to keep tears from coming to her eyes. She had felt slightly distressed by going through all the possibilities of their circumstance out loud, and she was frustrated that Jim seemed so nonchalant about the danger he had willingly barreled into.

"Jim. Before all of this started… why were you in my room?"

Emaleen meant to ask him this even less than she had meant to interrogate him about why he saved her. She knew better than to ask a question she didn't truly want the answer to, and she wasn't sure if she would be ready to hear his answer. Jim stared at her for so long; she began to think she would not be getting any answer at all.

"Do you know that you have nightmares?" Jim eventually asked. Emaleen's breath stopped in her throat for a moment. She had not at all thought that her question would lead to this. Finding her breath again, she nodded.

"You cry out in your sleep. A lot of the time you're calling for someone."

"My parents," Emaleen said softly. She didn't think Jim was asking for an answer, but she wanted to give it to him anyway. Jim stared at her for a moment without speaking.

"Your first night on the ship, I was on the deck late. I was just about to go to my cabin when I heard you cry out. I ran down here… I thought something was wrong, that something was happening to you. When I got here, I realized you were sleeping. I didn't want to wake you up, so I went to leave. You said something, and I thought I woke you up. When I responded, thinking you were talking to _me_, you said 'Don't hurt them'. You looked so… I don't know. So wound up. I still thought it would scare you if I woke you up, so I said 'I won't'. Your body relaxed, and I figured if the dream wasn't over, at least it wasn't so horrible anymore."

Emaleen was shocked. Jim was the voice that she had begun to seek out in her dreams. His was the one that told her everything would be alright. It was thanks to _him _that her sleep no longer tormented her, and her dreams were losing their sharp edges.

"The next night," Jim continued, "Just before I went to my cabin, I heard you again. I figured it was another dream, but I hurried down just in case, and the same thing happened. After that, I made it a point to be close at night, and come down here when I heard you call out."

"And tonight? I don't remember my dreams being bad… but you were here?"

Jim hesitated, and Emaleen saw his jaw clench. He looked as though he was hesitant to answer her question.

"I started to come down here and just wait for you to call out. So whatever was happening, it wouldn't last long," Jim paused. "I'm sorry if that was wrong for me to do."

Emaleen shook her head. "No. That's… not something you need to apologize for."

The two looked at each other for a moment longer. Emaleen had been struggling for something to say to Jim when they were coming down to the kitchen, and now she had so many things she wanted to say, but didn't know if she could.

"Have you had nightmares about your parents since you lost them?"

Emaleen remembered that when she told Jim about her parents, she allowed him to think that their deaths were longer ago than they were. Reasoning with herself that though it was misleading, it was the truth, Emaleen nodded.

"I've had dreams about people I've lost," Jim said, wincing slightly. "People who have left. They get better."

Emaleen nodded, looking at the ground. Hers were already improving, and she knew it was because even though she had been unaware of it, Jim was there when they were at their worst.

"I guess you don't want to tell me what happened to them?"

Emaleen swallowed hard, and looked up at Jim, offering him a small, apologetic smile. "No. Not yet."

Jim nodded and took in a deep breath, his features smoothing out.

"That's fine," he said sincerely, and looked around her small space. "Are you going to be ok? I'm going to need to go back up and check on everything."

Emaleen nodded. She felt exhausted, both physically and mentally drained. She knew Jim must be as well—he looked it—but she knew that as Captain, he had his responsibilities that were calling him away. Even if she wanted him to stay with her.

Taking a deep breath, Emaleen slowly extended her hand towards Jim. He was looking at the floor, but raised his eyes to meet hers when Emaleen rested her hand on his cheek.

Emaleen wasn't entirely sure what she was doing, or if it was alright. Her hand on the side of his face, Emaleen stared at Jim, not even knowing herself what her next move would be. His brows tilted slightly, Jim didn't say anything, but held Emaleen's gaze.

Emaleen took a step closer to Jim, closing the space between them. She dropped her hand from his cheek and wound both arms around his shoulders in a soft embrace. She felt Jim stand stiffly for a short moment, and then wrap both arms around her. As unsure as Emaleen was of the moves she was making, she felt good to be holding him, and comfortable to have him holding her.

"Thank you," she said softly. She hoped that he would somehow know all the different instances that her 'thank you' was for. Jim did not say anything, but slightly tightened his hold on her, and rested his face against her hair. The two stayed in their embrace a minute longer.

When Jim moved back, his face was free of any expressions that would have hardened it. He smiled at Emaleen and she smiled back, no longer worried that anything she had done had been the wrong thing.

"Good night, Emaleen," he said, stepping backwards out of her room.

"Good night, Jim."


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

The next morning, Emaleen was tired, but she made herself get up at her normal time. There were less crew members than normal who came into the kitchen for breakfast, and those who _did _come down ate quietly, looking much more worn than Emaleen felt. She was afraid that meant there was more damage to the ship than she had realized, and it was causing the crew to give more to its running than normal. Emaleen placed the untouched biscuits she had made into bowl, and went up to the deck.

The crew members were moving about busily, and Emaleen figured that those who came below appeared so tired because they had been busy through the night. Looking around, Emaleen saw many places on the ship where the wood had been damaged—splintered, scratched, and broken—from the rocks in the night. She walked to the rail on the starboard side, where Jim said the ship had been hit, and looked over the side. She saw two large pieces of tarp on the side of the ship, and assumed there were more chunks of wood missing under the cloths. Jim had also said the front of the ship needed to be checked, but Emaleen did not want to more damage.

Emaleen walked around the ship with her bowl of biscuits. She tried to be careful not to get in the way of anyone, and offered the food to those who had a free hand to take it. They ate quickly, sometimes not even pausing long enough to finish the food before jumping back into their work. Emaleen had not realized how many crew members had opted not to come down to the kitchens, and was glad that she thought to bring food to them. Walking about the deck, she felt guilty about having gone back to sleep the night before. She knew she would have only been underfoot on a busy ship, but she had not even thought to question what everyone else would be doing.

No one turned down the food until she was almost at the wheel. On her way there, she passed Jalson. He stalked past her, his jaw clenched, his hands in fists at the end of his long arms, and an angry look set on his face. She knew it was probably not a good moment to say _anything _to him, and pulled to the side of the steps, watching silently as he passed her. Emaleen looked up to the wheel, where he had come from, and saw Jim there, watching Jalson walk, his lips pursed slightly. When Emaleen reached the top of the steps, Jim turned to her and smiled. He thanked her when she offered him a biscuit, and she took a step closer to him as he ate.

"Is everything alright?" Emaleen asked, watching Jalson storm across the deck.

"With Jalson? He'll be fine."

"But he looks so upset. I haven't seen him look angry like that before."

"He doesn't agree with what we're doing. The ship took on a lot of damage last night. He thinks we can still fly it, but I don't want to take the risk. There's a planet nearby—Denbal—that we can get to before the day is over, and get the ship patched up."

Emaleen turned to Jim, surprised. "Why is he so upset about that? It seems like it's for the best… why wouldn't he want the ship taken care of?"

Jim shrugged. "I'm sure it's more that he doesn't want to take the _time _to make an extra stop, not that he's against the idea entirely. I know he likes to stay on schedule."

"How long do you think it will take?"

"I don't know," Jim said with a deep sigh, shaking his head. "I think we'll be able to get to Denbal fine, but we took some heavy damage. I won't know how long it will take to repair it until we land. Hopefully not more than a couple of days."

Emaleen nodded, thinking about their situation. She talked with Jim at the wheel for a while longer, until she told him she wanted to make another round with the food. When Jim asked her if she would come back to the wheel to stay with him longer, she smiled and agreed.

As Emaleen walked away from Jim, her smile weakened, and she rolled the small pendant of her necklace between two fingers, thinking. Since she had first decided to seek refuge on a ship, she figured it would be for as short of a time as possible. She had told herself that she would leave the ship as soon as it reached its first stop. Now, Emaleen realized, she was being faced with that decision. Her position on the ship, her sense of duty to the crew, and her growing relationship with Jim were things that she had not expected to happen. She had to think about what her next move was going to be, and how much she could allow those unexpected factors to have an impact on her decisions.

….

The ship landed on Denbal shortly after night fell. Their travel had been uneventful, with the crew routinely checking on the damaged part of the ship, at Jim's orders. When Emaleen was done cleaning the kitchen after dinner, she took note of any food the ship was running low on, at Jim's request. Preparing for the future of the ship was an uncomfortable task for Emaleen. She was unsure of where _she _would be in a few days, and how tied she would be to the ship's future. Of course, those were not thoughts that she could raise with Jim.

After the ship had docked, the crew exited. The port was not nearly as busy as the one where Emaleen had first found Jim's ship, though there were many that were silently stationed. Jim led them to an inn nearby, where he made accommodations for himself and the crew to stay. Jim told his exhausted crew that he had to go to someone who could make the repairs to his ship, but said that he would not need the crew for that, and insisted that they settle into their rooms. Few members of the crew offered any objection, which Jim would not hear. Without pushing the issue further, the crew dispersed and went up to their rooms.

Staying behind, Emaleen looked after those who left, and walked to Jim, keeping her voice low so that any lagging crew members would not hear the casual way she addressed him.

"Jim, I haven't been up like the rest of you. If there's something I can do to help, I can come along."

Jim gave her a tired smile and shook his head. "Thank you. But it really is a one-man job anyway. It's just talking, and I won't be long. I've been to this planet before, and I know where I can find someone to help. I shouldn't be gone for more than an hour."

Emaleen nodded, knowing that Jim's points made sense, and knowing that she would not be able to make him change his mind, even if she disagreed. Though she had come to be comfortable on the ship, she recognized that being somewhere new, when the sky was dark and the streets were quiet, made her feel slightly threatened. She would not have felt this way months ago, before any danger entered her life. But she viewed the unknown differently now. It even caused her to fear for Jim's safety, though she knew she had less reason to fear for him than she had to fear for herself.

"I _will _ask a favor though," he said. "If you think you're up for it."

"Of course," she responded quickly. "What can I do?"

"Take Morph? Just while I'm gone. I don't need to worry about him getting into anything he shouldn't be getting into."

Emaleen laughed. "Yes, I can do that."

Jim smiled and lifted Morph from his shoulder with a finger. He took a step closer to Emaleen, and transferred Morph to her shoulder. When Morph was settled, Jim grabbed Emaleen's shoulder and squeezed it gently. He opened his mouth, and Emaleen saw his eyes flicker above her head for a brief moment. Looking at her again, he smiled and took a step back before he let her go.

"I'll be back soon," he said. Shifting his attention to Morph, he gave him a stern look, with half a smile still on his face, and said "Keep an eye on her."'

Morph, who looked as tired as any other crew member, let out a trill. Emaleen looked down at him, and watched as his eyes grew nearly as big as his body, peering up at her. Jim chuckled, and left the inn.

Emaleen turned, laughing softly and rolling her eyes at Morph. She glanced up the stairs leading to the rooms, and saw Jalson standing at the landing, looking down at her. He disappeared before Emaleen could even open her mouth to say anything to him.


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

Emaleen woke up, not remembering having fallen asleep. She yawned and rubbed her face with her hands, trying to wake herself up more. She was curled on the bench of the window, fully dressed, her shoes still on, and Morph asleep on her hip. She realized she must have fallen asleep waiting for Jim to come back, though she did not remember making the conscious decision to do so. She propped herself up on her elbow slightly, trying not to disturb Morph, and looked out the window.

The area surrounding the inn was beautiful. Besides the path they took to the inn last night, tall, green grass grew everywhere. It was dotted with clusters of brightly colored flowers; Emaleen's window was too high above to see more than their colors, which were rich and deep. There were several tall trees, with long, dark green leaves, and the sky was a deeper blue than any sky Emaleen had seen before.

Scanning the grounds, Emaleen saw Jim. It was her first time seeing him in simple clothes, instead of his formal captain's apparel. Emaleen smiled, thinking that if she was seeing him for the first time, she would never believe he was a ship's captain. He was talking to one of the crew members, looking well and rested, which Emaleen took to be a good sign. She had had every intention of staying awake until he came back the night before, but she had no idea how long she lasted. She felt a strong pang of guilt at falling asleep like she did.

Lifting Morph as gently as she could, she stood up and set him down on the cushion. The night before, she had seen that her room—which Jim had made sure she had to herself—had its own basin, with soaps and taps for water. She had learned to make do with the large sink on the ship, so the space, the warm water, and the sweet smelling soaps felt like a luxury to Emaleen. Her urge to go outside, to breathe fresh air, and to see Jim, were matched by her desire to feel clean and fresh, so she washed her clothes, her hair, and body, assuring herself that she wouldn't be long.

Dressed again in the clothes she had wrung dry, her hair slightly damp and hanging down, Emaleen went over to the window again. Morph was awake, and floating above the window seat, looking out.

"You were supposed to keep me awake," Emaleen said. "I was supposed to babysit you, not kidnap you for the night."

Morph's only response was to fly to her, and nestle himself at the nape of her neck. Emaleen sighed and shook her head, leaving the room. Walking down the hallway, she saw Jim at the top of the stairs, talking to another crew member. She saw him glance at her briefly and smile before turning back to his conversation. Jim nodded at something the crew member said, smiled, and patted him once on the back as the crew member turned to walk down the stairs. Emaleen reached Jim then, as he turned to her.

"Good morning, Captain," she said, the crew member still close enough that Emaleen did not use his name. Morph flew from her shoulder, and into Jim's pant pocket. "I'm sorry I'm getting him back to you so late."

Jim chuckled as Morph emerged from his pocket with a loosely wrapped berry. "That's fine. Things last night took longer than I thought they would—I was glad you didn't stay up all that time. I hope he let you sleep," Jim said, motioning to Morph, who had already finished the berry.

"He did," Emaleen said. "I think he was more tired than I was; he was still asleep when I woke up."

"How _did _you sleep?"

"I slept well," Emaleen responded automatically. Her eyes widened for a moment when she realized that her answer was true. She slept sound throughout the night, never being woken or bothered by any dreams. "I slept completely well."

Jim smiled and nodded. "Good. I'm glad to hear that. Here," he said, extending his hand to Emaleen. She noticed for the first time that he had another loosely wrapped bundle of berries, which he gave to her. With his other hand he blocked Morph, who flew at the berries once he saw them. "I've been letting the crew know, they have the day to themselves. The ship's in good hands, being worked on. I was wondering if you would like to spend some time exploring a bit with me today?"

Like in the beginning of her time on the ship, Emaleen knew his request was sincere, and she had the freedom to turn it down. However, even more than the day he had asked if he could join her at the railing of the ship, she welcomed his company. She was excited at the prospect of time uninterrupted by his duties, and space larger than the deck of a ship to walk.

She smiled at him. "I would like that very much."

….

"The cave's not much further," Jim said, helping Emaleen step over a log. They had left the inn behind some time ago. Jim had assured Emaleen that he knew the way to his destination, though the majority of their walking had been through tall trees, away from any other buildings and people. The air felt fresh, and the sunshine warmed anything it touched. They passed through the tall trees with their long, green leaves, and made their way through grass that reached their knees. "You're not getting tired, are you?"

Emaleen looked at Jim and smiled. "No, definitely not. This is beautiful, I could walk forever."

Jim chuckled. "That's good. It'll be just around this bend, but I have no idea how deep the cave actually is."

"You haven't been _in _the cave before?" Emaleen asked, feeling her first twinge of fear.

"No—but don't worry, its fine!"

"Jim—"

She stopped short of what she was saying as she and Jim broke through a cluster of trees. She _had _meant to voice her concerns to Jim, to suggest that they spend their time somewhere else, and tell him that she didn't think exploring an unfamiliar cave on their own was the best idea. However, the beauty of the setting they had just walked onto stopped all the words from coming out. She saw the cave just ahead of them, carved into a mountain covered with tall grass. There were short flowers that had large yellow and white petals. There were shoots, nearly as tall as Emaleen, with clusters of bulky purple flowers. Vines with light green leaves as large as her hand curled around the opening of the cave.

"You see?" Jim said, who was smiling at her reaction. "This doesn't look so threatening, does it?"

"This is the outside. Are you sure you don't want to stick with just exploring the outside?"

Emaleen knew that her tone was relenting, and all it took was a laugh and a guiding arm on her back to push her along. When they reached the opening of the cave, Emaleen fell back a step, behind Jim. In the shade of the cave the air was cooler, but it moved through enough to make the cave still feel fresh. Their footsteps echoed, and Emaleen felt her sense of adventure weaken as they quickly lost the light from the sun outside. Emaleen's eyes were wide open, as though it would help her see in the growing darkness. She didn't even want to breathe too loudly, for fear of alerting something less than friendly that they were there.

"Jim," she said softly, thoughtlessly grabbing two handfuls of his shirt and pressing herself close to his back. "You're going to keep me safe, right?"

She felt Jim shift slightly, and, still walking, he had taken her right hand in his, while she kept her grip on the back of his shirt with her other hand.

"Yes," he said, his voice calm. "I'm going to keep you safe."

As they walked, Jim pointed out different things in the cave. Guiding the hand of hers that he was holding, he ran her fingers along the wall, so she could feel where gems were protruding. He showed her holes in the ground along the walls, though neither of them could see much in the growing darkness, and speculated over what type of animals might be living there.

"Do you hear that?" Emaleen asked, more out of wonder than fear. "It sounds like music."

Jim stretched their hands high, and Emaleen could feel a steady stream of air moving in the same directions they were walking.

"There's got to be holes throughout the cave's ceiling," he explained. "The air blows through, and it sounds like music."

Though she did not relinquish her hold on Jim, Emaleen did not feel as afraid of the cave as they explored. She assumed there were likely still dangers there, but Jim seemed sure in what he was doing. She was comforted simply to be holding on to him, and was glad he did not oppose to her doing so. She had always loved to learn new things, and he was teaching her what he knew. Since entering the cave, they had been going up a gradual climb, and when they reached a certain point, the ground leveled out and took a sharp right turn. Jim stopped a few feet from the turn, and Emaleen followed suit.

"We'll lose the rest of the light here," he said. "Let me see if I can tell what's up there—you stay here for just a second."

Emaleen was reluctant to let Jim go, but she did. Before she could voice her concerns, with a smile in his voice, Jim said "Don't worry, I'll be careful."

Emaleen laughed briefly, nervously, as Jim took a few steps from her. The further he got, the harder it was to see him, and when he turned around the corner, he disappeared entirely.


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12

Emaleen stared into the darkness, holding her necklace and biting her lower lip. She had hoped Jim would only go a few steps past the turn and make his way back, but judging by the time she had been standing alone, he had gone further. Emaleen knew that standing alone in the darkness, no longer hearing his footsteps around the corner, unable to see hardly anything, the time he was gone seemed much longer than it actually was. She began to count seconds, both to prove to herself that her mind was exaggerating things, and to somehow occupy herself.

Emaleen thought she heard a noise around the corner—something rustling, or a rush of air—but the sound was so muted, she could not tell. Leaning forward, abandoning her counting, Emaleen strained to listen. The sound was joined by something rhythmic; a fast pounding. After listening intently for a moment more, Emaleen realized with a jolt that they were footsteps. Running.

Seconds after she identified the sound as footsteps, Jim skidded around the corner. When Emaleen could see his face clearly, she saw his eyes open wide in surprise, his mouth open and turned up in a slight smile. He looked like a young boy who had committed some mischievous act. His expression would have been comical, if he weren't running, with the rushing sound growing behind him. Morph flew past him, and then past Emaleen, towards the mouth of the cave.

"Run," Jim said, running towards Emaleen. "Run now!"

Confused, but motivated enough by Jim's urgency and her own fear, Emaleen spun around and ran. She was grateful now for the uphill slope that took them to where they stopped; running downhill moved her along faster. Jim appeared next to her, and since his run did not slow at all, neither did hers. Again with a jolt, Emaleen suddenly heard the rustling noise clearer, and knew whatever was behind them had also made its way around the corner. It was a great, powerful noise, though Emaleen could not identify. Despite the smile Jim could not completely control when he rounded the corner, Emaleen was afraid of whatever the source of the noise was, so she did not have even the slightest desire to turn around and look.

Running, going downhill, and moving _toward _the light instead of away from it, made this journey feel much quicker than the journey into the cave. She tried not to think about tripping over rocks or stepping into holes, fearing that simply entertaining the idea would bring it to pass. When she was close enough to the mouth of the cave that the sunlight touched the floor, Emaleen quickened her pace, as did Jim. The noise behind them had neither diminished nor decreased, and Emaleen hoped that the open space would be offering them safety.

Two steps before she was outside, she heard Jim yell out "Get down, get down!". Before she even had the chance to try and act on his warning quickly enough, he wrapped both of his arms around her, and jumped down to the ground with her. They landed side by side, but Jim's arm between her and the ground kept her from hitting it with too hard of an impact. Immediately turning her head to the cave, Emaleen saw what looked like a plume of fire shooting out of the cave. Looking longer, she realized that they were birds, red, orange, and gold, flying together out of the cave. They flew far enough out of the cave to be flying just above Emaleen and Jim, and then straight into the sky. All of them flying together, as though one unit, Emaleen could not distinguish how big the birds were, or what they individually looked like. She assumed that there were well over a hundred birds that flew out of the cave, the rushing of their wings only quieting once the last one was well above their heads.

Jim released his hold on Emaleen, though one arm was still under her, and lay on his back, still breathing hard. The smile on his face was even less concealed now, as he watched the birds fly above them.

"What _happened?" _Emaleen asked, propping herself up on one elbow.

"I don't even know!" Jim said with a laugh. "I was walking in one straight line, my hand was on the wall… and then I felt a feather! It must have been a tail or something… I _swear, _I didn't do anything more than that, and then I've suddenly got hundreds of pairs of eyes open in front of me, so I turned and ran!"

Jim looked at Emaleen, and laughed again. "I had no _idea _there was anything in that cave… definitely not anything that would chase us out!"

His hair looked disarrayed, and his eyes were still wide, as though he couldn't quite believe what had just happened. Whether he was aware of it or not, he still had a slight smile on his face. He looked both bewildered and amused, and came off as more of a young, simple man than Emaleen had ever seen him as. A combination of his expression, her rush of adrenaline, and the fact that ruby colored _birds _had chased them from their exploration, made Emaleen laugh. Her laugh, at first, was not more than a giggle. Unexpectedly, it continued, and soon Emaleen threw her head back, her arms wrapped around her waist, laughing loudly and freely. She was distantly aware of Jim joining in on her laughter, but she could not bring herself to acknowledge it, or quiet herself. By the time she stopped, her sides hurt and her cheeks ached. She lay on her back, wiping tears from her eyes, her laughing trailing off into soft chuckles.

"I have _never _heard you laugh like that," Jim said. Emaleen looked at him, and saw that he had flipped onto his stomach, up on his forearms, looking at her, a wide smile on his face.

Emaleen laughed shortly and covered her face with her hands.

"I'm sorry," she said, unable to help her smile. "I don't even know what came over me! I don't think I ever _have _laughed like that."

She uncovered her face and looked up at the sky. She felt that with the laughing, a weight that had been on her chest since she left home was lifted. It had been decreasing little by little, but she felt that as she laughed, it left her. There was still a pain—like pulling a thorn from her finger, a dull sense of the pain remained, but the severity of it was gone, and she felt like she could move freely again.

…..

The crew was on Denbal for three full days. Every morning, Jim would go to the port where his ship was being repaired. On the third day, he told the crew at breakfast that they would be ready to leave the next morning. There were mixed reactions; everyone had been enjoying their time on Denbal. The small break seemed to revive the crew, especially after the stresses of the night their ship was caught in the storm of rocks. However, they were clearly looking forward to getting back to the ship, to fall back into a routine, and move forward again with a purpose.

The only one who did not seem at all sorry to leave Denbal was Jalson. From what Emaleen could tell, he had not enjoyed his time on the planet. Whenever she saw him, he seemed moody, and was clearly impatient to return to the ship. When she would try to make conversation with him, it seemed as though he had to put effort into talking to her; their conversations were short, and though once they were started they flowed normally, Emaleen could not help but feel they were forced. She voiced her thoughts to Jim, who reassured her that it was Jalson's nature. He told her that Jalson was not happy when things did not go according to plan. She hesitantly suggested that Jalson perhaps did not approve of the time the two of them were spending together, but Jim dismissed that. He did not think Jalson would care about something like that, so long as he led the ship as he was supposed to. Emaleen told herself that she would need to make it a point to show a professional relationship with Jim once they were back on the ship.

On Denbal, however, things were different. Each day they were there, the two of them—as well as Morph—spent the majority of their time together. They explored the woods, climbed the peaks, walked through the small towns, got lost in thickets and found themselves again. Emaleen had become particularly fond of one clearing they had stumbled across when they had left the cave on their first day. The clearing was surrounded by the tall trees, and looked as though few people knew of it. There were several large rocks throughout, there flowers of many different colors and heights, and the grass was short and compact, which made it easy to move across. On the evening of their third day, Jim and Emaleen returned there. They sat on the grass, their backs against the largest rock, facing the sun. It would soon set behind the trees, and Emaleen knew that meant it would be time to head back into the inn. She had told Jim before that it would be too risky for them to try and travel through the woods at night—in reality, she was afraid of facing a memory of moving through dark woods, and did not think even the presence of Jim would calm her.

"Emaleen," Jim said, still facing the sun. "You're leaving with us tomorrow, right?"

Emaleen was looking down at her lap, tying together the stems of small, white flowers to make a wreath. Jim's question caught her off guard, and her fingers stopped. She had decided the day before that she _would _continue on with the ship, but she had never even voiced to Jim the fact that she was questioning it.

"Yes," she said, slowly looking at him. "Why would you ask that?"

He did not immediately return her gaze, but shrugged, his lips pursed.

"I don't know," he said. "You didn't sign on to this like everyone else. You didn't know where we were going, or how long it would take. I just wasn't sure."

Emaleen felt hurt to see how Jim was affected. She felt abashed for even having thought of staying behind and not travelling with the crew. She knew that she could not tell him that it had even been a question for her, so she decided to act as though his worries were unfounded, and that their conversation was anything but serious. She tied the two ends of the wreath together, laid it down in her lap and reached over to grab his hand.

"I can tell you're still upset," she said. "Your mouth does that thing when you're upset. So stop it. You're stuck with me, whether you like it or not."

Jim laughed and shook his head, squeezing her fingers.

"Well," he said. "No one can say I forced you."

"I'm glad we have this settled," Emaleen said, smiling, and laid the wreath on top of her head. "Now let's head back to the inn before we have to feel our way there."

Still holding Jim's hand, she stood up. She laughed and tugged on his arm as he stood slowly. Once he was standing, she turned to walk, and realized quickly that he wasn't moving with her. She turned back around to see what was stopping him, and as she did, he grabbed her other arm and pulled her close to him. Before she could even ask what he was doing, Jim leaned down and kissed her.

After a moment that felt both very long and too short, Jim pulled his head back. He did not let go of her arm, but loosened his grip slightly.

"I'm sorry," he said, his brows tilted up. "That was fast. I just—wanted to do that before you told me not to."

Lost for words for only a moment, Emaleen smiled, looking up at Jim.

"I don't think I would have said no," she said. This time, she stood on her toes to meet Jim as he bent down to kiss her again.


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter 13

"You know you can't even hold my hand when we're around the crew," Emaleen said. As it was, they were walking back to the inn, holding hands.

Jim laughed. "I'm the captain—doesn't that mean I can hold hands with who I want?"

"_Jim,_" Emaleen said in a reproachful tone. "I won't even call you by your name around them. I'm just another part of your crew. I don't want them to think that I'm anything more."

"Well what about these past few days? I haven't really been spending quality time with everyone."

"Everyone's been on this planet, having all the places to explore and all the time to do what they want—I don't think they've been paying attention to what anyone else has been doing. On the ship, there's nowhere to _not _be noticed."

Jim sighed, but when Emaleen looked at him, she saw that he was smiling.

"Do I still get to talk to you?" he asked. "Or are we only allowed to communicate through gestures from across the ship?"

Emaleen laughed and stopped, pulling Jim to a stop next to her. They were at the edge of the woods. A few more steps and they would be back within view of the inn. Emaleen turned to look at Jim, and took his free hand with hers.

"You will still get to talk to me. I still want you to walk around the ship with me, and talk while we sit on the bowsprit, and stay in the kitchen with me while I wash the dishes. The crew can see us do all the things they've already seen us do—and when we're absolutely alone, _then _you may hold my hand."

Jim cocked his head and smiled at Emaleen. "And then you'll call me Jim?" Emaleen laughed and nodded. "And _then _I can kiss you?"

"I think we can probably make that work."

"And do you think I can kiss you now?"

Emaleen smiled, and before she had even nodded twice, Jim kissed her.

…..

The next morning, the crew was on the ship before the sun had been in the sky for more than an hour. This was Jim's attempt to coax Jalson back into a positive mood; when he didn't seem anxious to be back on board, he seemed sullen. Emaleen knew that anything regarding his behavior would only be her own speculations, so she told herself to stop investing so much time into figuring out what was wrong.

When the ship was being prepared for flight, Emaleen stood at the wheel with Jim. The first time the ship took off, Emaleen had stayed below, in the kitchen. She hadn't felt that staying on deck, visible to anyone in the port, was a safe decision. This time, however, her only fear on Denbal had been the red birds in the cave, and even they had turned out to be harmless. In an attempt to stay out of the way, she stayed at the wheel, and watched the crew move about in their various tasks on deck.

"Are you sad to leave?" Jim asked.

Emaleen smiled and turned to look over her shoulder at the planet.

"I am," she said. "A little bit, anyway. It's a beautiful planet—it was a nice stop. Even if we _did _have to come here because your ship had been mangled."

Jim laughed and winced, running his hand across the wheel.

"This poor ship. It took a good beating. But it could have been worse. And no one was hurt, so as far as mangled ships go, we got off pretty easy."

Jalson approached the wheel then. With his long, lean body, he only needed to climb the first two steps leading to the wheel before he was nearly eye to eye with Jim.

"The ship's ready to take off, Captain," he said. For the briefest moment, his eyes flickered over to Emaleen, and then he looked back to Jim.

"Thank you, Jalson," Jim said. He called out to the rest of the crew, telling them to brace themselves for the departure. Holding tightly to the rail, Emaleen watched him adjust a few levers, launch the ship. Quicker than Emaleen would have thought the big ship could move, they were high into the air. She glanced back behind her, and was surprised at how distant Denbal already was. It was a small dot, well behind them. She turned back around, and noticed Jim looking at her.

"Thinking we should just turn around and head back?" he asked.

"No, Captain," Emaleen said, laughing. She was very aware that Jalson was still on the steps, and she felt that even though they were getting back on track, she needed to tread carefully around him; especially regarding the schedule he was so devoted to. "I think it's definitely time for us to be on our way."

Jim nodded and smiled. "Jalson," he said, turning to him. "Do you have that map for me?"

Jalson nodded and walked the next few steps up the wheel, to stand next to Jim.

"Yes, Captain," he said. He laid a map out on a table next to Jim, and showed him the direction to take to get their ship back on course. Emaleen didn't understand many of the terms they were using, so she let her mind wander. She was looking out at the crew, not thinking of anything in particular, until Jalson said something which abruptly grabbed her attention.

"Electric storm?" she asked, feeling a flutter of nerves in her stomach. "Did you say 'electric storm'?"

Jalson and Jim both looked up from the map and at Emaleen. Without lifting his finger from the spot it was pointing to, Jalson addressed her first.

"Yes, Miss Emaleen," he said. Emaleen did not miss the fact that it was the first time he had called her by name in days. "I spoke to a crewman of another ship who was on Denbal. He had gone through the same area we will be passing through, and told me it cuts through an electric storm."

"That sounds dangerous!" Emaleen exclaimed. "We can't avoid it?"

"It's not as dangerous as it sounds," Jalson said. "It doesn't cover much space; we won't be in it for long. I've flown through these before, and if we have all the crew off the deck, the ship will pass through unaffected."

Still feeling anxious, Emaleen looked to Jim. He smiled and shrugged his shoulders.

"I've never gone through one before," he said. "But Jalson has. And I've heard that's the way to ride them out. He knows where it is on the map, and what signs to look for when we're approaching it. It's really nothing to worry about."

Jalson nodded his head in agreement, staring at Emaleen. She bit her lip and sighed. She didn't like the idea of passing through any storm; especially one which they needed to hide from for their safety. However, she told herself that if Jim and Jalson did not feel that there was a real threat from the storm, she shouldn't fear it either.

"Alright," she said. "If you both think we'll be safe in it, I believe you."

Emaleen stood with Jim and Jalson for a while longer, but after a while she excused herself, not wanting to intrude too much. She went down to the kitchen to sort and organize the things Jim had bought for the kitchen. There wasn't much to put away, as they would reach their destination in a matter of days, and the ship would stay in the port of the next planet for a short time before it took off again. After Emaleen was finished organizing things in the kitchen, she cleaned the dining area. She felt that her time on Denbal had spoiled her somewhat, and she felt restless with suddenly having so little to do. When she felt satisfied with the dining area, she went back on deck.

Worrying that she would be in someone's way, as she normally felt when she was on deck, Emaleen walked to the railing of the ship which seemed unoccupied. She had just spotted another ship when Jim joined her at the rail.

"Do you see that?" Emaleen asked, pointing to the ship. "The whole time we've been out here, I haven't seen anyone else flying."

"It's not unusual, now that we're getting close to Crassan," he said, referring to the planet they were heading to. "It's a busy port for ships. You'll see more as we get closer to the planet."

"But do you think they know about the storm?"

Jim shrugged his shoulders slightly and squeezed her arm.

"Don't worry about them too much," he said. "There's sure to be someone on the ship who knows what they're doing. I'm sure they'll be fine."

Reassuring Emaleen of the ship's safety, Jim walked with her to the bowsprit. He took her hand to lead her across, and Emaleen grinned, knowing he was pushing his limits with the rules she had set. When they both sat down, he released her hand, but laid it down so close to hers that their fingers touched.

"Jalson offered to fly the ship until we get to the storm," Jim said. "That way he'll be able to make sure we don't hit it before we're prepared."

"He seems to be in a better mood, doesn't he?" asked Emaleen. She had been waiting anxiously for Jalson to behave like normal, so she took any sign of improvement as things turning around.

Jim cocked his head and smiled at her. "I told you that you were too worried about him," he said. "It was being off schedule that had him bothered. Now that everything's running smoothly again, he's fine."

Emaleen nodded, feeling relieved. It made sense that Jalson would be upset about the delay, with him being as devoted to his work as Jim claimed he was. And if he had any trouble with Jim and Emaleen's relationship with each other, it made sense that _that _would smooth over once he saw that Jim was still taking his responsibilities seriously.

Emaleen didn't know how long she and Jim were on the bowsprit, but eventually a crew member called out to them from the deck, informing them that Jalson was nearing the storm, and was waiting on the captain to give the final word to clear the deck. Emaleen felt full of a nervous energy as Jim took her hand again and helped her back to the deck. She repeatedly told herself that everything would be fine, things were under control, and they would emerge on the other side of the storm, unharmed.

Securely on the deck, Emaleen looked out to the space in front of them. She saw a large cloud in the direction they were moving; the cloud looked harmless, but she could only assume that it was the energy storm. Jim called out to Jalson to set the ship to coast forward, and told the crew to clear the deck and head to their quarters, where they were to stay until they were informed that it was safe to return to the deck.

As Jalson made the adjustments on the ship and the crew dispersed, Jim turned to Emaleen.

"Do you want me to go down to the kitchen with you?"

Emaleen smiled and shook her head firmly.

"No," she said. "I don't want you to leave the crew by themselves and just stay with _me_. Go to your cabin. I'll be fine by myself."

Jim smiled. "I thought you might say that. Jalson will know when we're out of the storm. Someone will come and tell you when we're clear."

"Captain!" Jalson called out, stepping away from the wheel. "It's time we all get into some cover."

Jim nodded to him, and turned back to Emaleen. He leaned forward and kissed her quickly on the cheek before she could object. Had she known it was coming, she didn't think she would have objected to it, even though it _was _breaking her rules.

"Get downstairs," he said. "I'll see you soon."

"See you soon," Emaleen responded, giving as sure of a smile as she could. She hurried down to the kitchen, knowing Jim would not go into his own cabin until she was safely tucked away.

…..

Emaleen began to work on the crew's dinner. Things were completely silent outside, and the quiet was unnerving. She hummed a bit, but found it to sound too strange against the complete silence. She had a large pot of water that had begun to boil, and was slicing food to add to it, allowing her utensils to make as much noise as they would.

When she heard a small sound behind her, Emaleen jumped and turned around. She put her hand to her chest and expelled a nervous laugh when she saw Jalson at the bottom of the stairs. Like the first time they had met, he had descended the stairs silently, and she was surprised at his sudden appearance.

"Jalson," she exclaimed, her voice uneven from being startled. "You scared me!"

"My apologies, Miss Emaleen," he said, bowing his head slightly, his features unchanging.

"I'm assuming we've passed through the storm? Thank you for coming to tell me. I've actually started dinner, so I'll stay here to work on it, but I _am _glad to know that we're past it."

"Miss Emaleen," Jalson said slowly after a moment of silence. "I need you to come on deck."

Regardless of his words, there was something in his somber tone and set face which disturbed Emaleen.

"What—did something happen?" Emaleen asked, breathlessly. "Somebody got hurt in the storm, didn't they?"

"No one has been hurt. And no one will be, so long as you come on deck with me. Now."

"Jalson, I don't understand…"

Emaleen was confused. Jalson had told her no one was hurt, but she did not understand why he would say that no one would _be _hurt. She could not comprehend how her actions would keep anyone from being safe.

Jalson took a step towards Emaleen, and she reflexively took a step back. She couldn't think of any solid reason to be afraid of Jalson, but she had felt threatened when he stepped towards her.

"Jalson, _what _is going on?"

"There is no storm in these clouds," Jalson said, his tone as emotionless as his face. "They're a cover. Saying there was a storm was a lie. It was the only way we could think to remove the captain without invoking suspicion."

Emaleen stared at Jalson, barely comprehending his words. Trapped in a haze of confusion and a growing dread, her mouth hung open, but she could not utter any words, even if she did know what to say.

"You will come on deck with me _now_. A ship will be here in a few minutes. You _will _be on deck when it arrives, quietly, and this will be done."

"Whose ship, Jalson?" Emaleen asked in a voice that was barely loud enough to be a whisper. She didn't need an answer. Her throat felt hot; she was breathing quick and shallow, and not getting enough air. She felt dizzy, and fearfully close to losing consciousness. Her stomach twisted and tightened so painfully, she was sure she was going to be sick. She could almost see the watery eyes before her, and could almost hear the raspy voice. Like on the cliff, the night she ran for her life, she could sense, instead of see, the hand reaching out for her. Whether Jalson answered or not, she did not know. She heard the name sound in her head, like an angry buzz that crowded out every other thought. The name that she despised and feared. The name of the monster that tore everything out of her life, and would have stolen her life as well, if she had not seized the chance to run. The name of the one she had ceased to fear she would ever encounter again.

Mordech.


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter 14

Emaleen didn't realize she had moved back further until she bumped against the stove and felt the heat of the fire at her side. She forced herself to breathe, though her breath was coming sporadically. She made herself stay alert, because any chance she had was dependent upon her actions in the next few minutes. Her time was short and her hope was frail, and if she let her fear run its course, she would find herself completely without them both.

"Jalson," she said, her voice choked and quiet. "Do you know who he _is_?"

"No," he replied coldly, shaking his head. "Nor do I have any desire to."

"Then why did you agree to help him? Why are you doing this?"

Emaleen knew she did not have the time to have a conversation with Jalson. However, she felt that she needed to at least _try _and make him understand the severity of her situation. If she could sway him to help her, he could be a powerful ally. If he stayed firm in his intent to deliver her to Mordech, he made a powerful enemy. She would have a greater chance of escape with Jalson working with her rather than against her.

"It's a job. I'm to give you to him, and that's the end of it. I don't need to know who you are to him, or who he is to you. It's just another delivery."

"What will you tell the crew? What will you tell Jim?" Emaleen asked desperately. If Jalson only saw his actions as carrying out business, maybe she would be able to persuade him with seeing reason. She didn't have time to try much else.

"The crew knows. Everyone but the captain. We will tell him that you simply must have gone into the storm, thinking it was safe. I worried to see you two become so close; we had to find some way to separate the two of you without rousing suspicions. None of us want to involve him; he's a good man. But we're each being offered more than we'll receive from this trip, to discreetly hand you over to him."

"Jalson, _please_," Emaleen cried, feeling tears of panic welling in her eyes. "He'll _kill _me! He's already killed—"

Jalson held up a great hand, and Emaleen flinched from it, her nerves wound so tightly, thinking that he intended to strike her. As it seemed, he was only holding his hand up to silence her.

"I don't want to hear any of it. The less I know about all of this, the better. Don't think that you can make me take pity on you and change my mind. He'll be here any minute, and you _will _be on deck with me."

Emaleen took a shaky step away from Jalson, which caused him to reach out for her. Knowing he would have a grip on her before she turned and ran in the other direction, Emaleen did all she could think to do to help herself. She had to view Jalson as another threat, if he was planning to hand deliver her to Mordech. Forcing her body to move, she grabbed the large pot of boiling water. She flung the contents at Jalson and dropped the pot at his feet, her hands burning where they had touched the hot metal. Jalson yelled out and fell backwards.

The pain on Emaleen's hands was momentarily debilitating, but knowing that her time was quickly fleeing, she turned and ran away from Jalson. She crossed the dining area quicker than she ever had, and all but flew up the stairs. If she had acted too slowly, she would be in the exact spot where Mordech wanted her to be. However, she held on to the hope that she remained two steps ahead, and would be lucky enough to escape a second time.

On the deck, the ship was clearly still in the cloud, but Emaleen knew now that it was harmless. The only threat was brought by the ship that silently loomed almost directly above her. Feeling her heart beat rapidly against her chest, she continued to hurdle herself across the deck, and kept her eyes focused on the floor in front of her. If she gave any attention to how close the ship actually was, she was afraid she would lose her remaining hope. If she happened to see Mordech looking down at her, she knew he would win the fight then and there.

Quickly—though she didn't feel that she could be moving quickly enough—she reached the wheel. Among her first few days on the ship, Jim had shown her how all the different controls worked to master the speed of the ship. No one had ever thought to explain to her how to actually control it, but that couldn't matter. She had moments, if not mere seconds. Gritting her teeth against the pain in her hands, Emaleen grabbed the control that she knew accelerated the speed of the ship, pulled it back, and simultaneously pulled the wheel hard to one side, directing it away from Mordech's looming ship.

The sudden acceleration and sharp turn threw Emaleen to the floor. She cried out as she fell, and for a few moments, force kept her from being able to even raise her head. When she could, she looked wildly around to find how far she was from Mordech's ship. Unable to see it, she jumped to her feet, and ran to the railing. Looking out over the back end of the ship, she could see his ship a good distance behind her. However, Emaleen could not allow herself to feel safe or complacent. He knew precisely where she was, so she had not done much more than buy herself minutes to figure out the next step in her plan. And if Jalson had told her the truth when he said the whole crew was involved, she had to figure out what to do about them, knowing they would likely understand that the ship moving as it did was not a part of the plan. She also had Jalson to consider—pouring the boiling water on him would likely not keep him down for much longer. Like a brief flash, the thought that all her actions were in vain entered her mind, but she swiftly pushed it away.

Not knowing exactly what her next move would be, Emaleen ran down the stairs from the wheel. She knew that she would not be able to accelerate the ship again soon, so standing at the wheel would be wasting time. She reached the bottom of the steps, and immediately something exploded at her side, against one of the stair's banister. Emaleen fell against the opposite banister, pulling away from the explosion. Looking up, her eyes focused on one of the crew members in the doorway of their quarters, pointing his gun at her.

Eyes wide, Emaleen screamed as someone grabbed her arm from behind. She tried to pull against the grasp as it pulled her around the banister. Another shot from the crew member exploded against the spot where Emaleen had stood before she was pulled, and she jumped back, into the person holding her. Before he could get a tighter hold on her, Emaleen frantically began to pull away again.

"Emaleen, _stop,_" he hissed. Emaleen's heart leapt to her throat as she realized the voice belonged to Jim. This time she didn't resist as he pulled her backwards. She hadn't thought about how close she was to his cabin until he had pulled her inside and closed the door.

She had never been inside of his cabin before, but taking in its details was the last thing her mind could do. She watched him as he slid a metal door over the wooden one he had just closed.

"Jim, wait," she said frantically. "You're just trapping us in here!"

He shook his head as he locked the door into place.

"Trust me," he said. "I know what I'm doing. Tell me what's happening out there." His voice sounded calm, but his face was set and serious. He crossed over to his desk, and opened a drawer. As he took out a key and a gun, Emaleen spoke quickly.

"Someone's attacking the ship," she said. "Jalson and the crew knew; they told us that we were heading into a storm to keep us from knowing when it came. I flew the ship away as best as I could, but he's still coming."

"How did you—" Jim began to ask, but a loud noise at the door stopped him. He grabbed Emaleen's forearm and ran her to a door against the far wall of his cabin. He used the key he had pulled from the desk to unlock it, and heaved the door, which must have been heavier than it appeared, open. Morph, who had been hiding in Jim's pocket, flew into the long hallway that the door led to. Jim quickly ushered her inside.

Jim pulled the heavy door closed, and began to run down the hallway, pulling Emaleen along.

"Of _course _this is happening," he growled. "Of _course _the crew is attacking!"

Emaleen felt a jolt of guilt. She knew Jim took assigning a crew very seriously. Since it turned out that the crew of the ship he was on at 17 was a group of pirates, he was so selective, to make sure the same thing did not happen again. The crew would not be attacking if it weren't for Emaleen; they would be happily sailing now, if she had boarded any other ship.

"Jim, where are we going?" Emaleen asked, as Jim unlocked a second door. They went through and the door slammed shut as they ran again before he answered.

"When I was building the ship, I needed to be ready in case this sort of thing happened. This hall runs under the ship, and there's a small boat at the end. The doors all lock as soon as they close, and I'm the only one with the key." He paused as he unlocked a third door that they slipped through. Emaleen heard a loud boom somewhere behind them before the door shut. "None of the crew knows this is here. We're lucky the rocks hit the other side of the ship—this would have all been destroyed."

"Jim, that noise—" Emaleen started, worriedly.

"They must have gotten into the cabin," Jim said, glancing at her as they continued to run. "Don't worry, these doors are strong, and they're designed to stay locked for minutes after you open them once. We'll be off the ship before they even make it through."

A knot in Emaleen's stomach twisted painfully. Jim surely thought their attackers were nothing more sinister than a group of pirates, driven by a greed for riches and power. He didn't know that they were headed by someone worse, driven by a blood-lust. Someone who would have the power to take the solid doors from their hinges, and the motivation to catch up, no matter how fast they ran.

"Jim," Emaleen said hurriedly, seeing that they were approaching the next door. "I have no idea how to help you launch that ship—what do I do?"

"You stand back," he responded. "I designed it so I could get it down by myself. Don't worry about that."

His response was exactly what Emaleen hoped it would be. She took a deep breath to try and steady herself as Jim unlocked the door. As soon as it opened a crack, Morph flew ahead. Emaleen stood behind Jim as he pulled the door open.

"Keep running," she said quickly, straining to keep her voice from breaking. "It's me they're after."

Before Jim could even question Emaleen, she gave him a push through the door. She saw him run forward a few steps, surprised and off balance, before he turned around, shouting her name. Before he could run back, she closed the door and heard the lock click, separating the two of them.


	15. Chapter 15

Chapter 15

Emaleen leaned against the door she had just shut. She could hear Jim's muffled voice yelling her name, and could feel the heavy door tremble slightly as he pounded against it. She knew that there was nothing he could do now to open the door. After a few moments, the door was still, and Jim's voice stopped. Emaleen felt an intense hope that that meant he was moving on, and not waiting for the door to unlock again. There was nothing more that she could do at that point than hope.

From the doors they had ran through together, Emaleen heard more booming noises. They were getting progressively louder, and they were not coming far apart. She knew that Mordech was coming. He would not be far behind, and the long hall and strong doors would not be enough to hold him back. Emaleen had known that. It was why she had separated herself from Jim; Mordech was out for blood, and he would take it from anyone who he came across.

With Jim no longer pounding at the door, deep beneath the deck in his secret tunnel, it was nearly silent where Emaleen stood. All except for the booming noises coming her way. Each broke through the silence so loudly, Emaleen jumped high, and felt her blood run cold. A part of her wished Mordech would be there sooner, so that the anticipation would be over.

As soon as that thought registered, the door Emaleen stood facing began to tremble. With no more warning than a quick vibration, it was torn down. The floor shook beneath Emaleen's feet as it landed. She knew that it was not the anticipation, after all, that was the worst part, and thinking that way had been a childlike denial. The worst part would begin now, now that Mordech had caught up with her again.

Taking in the sight of him, Emaleen tried to step back. She moved her feet twice before realizing she was against a very solid door, and was only pressing against it harder. There was nowhere she could go. Mordech was standing in front of the only other way out of the room. Emaleen knew she could not run past him, even if she somehow summoned the courage to move close enough.

Everything about him was broad. In the middle of the torn doorway, his body left almost no open space. His face was broad; she imagined it was about the width of two of hers. His eyes constantly had a sheen to them, like an animal when its eyes caught a light in the dark. His skin was slick, and a dark, muted yellow. His nails were thick, and as long as Emaleen's fingers. They matched the shard-like spikes which travelled up his arms and clustered at his shoulders and chest. Emaleen knew they were sharp enough to cut, and dull enough to cut slowly. His jaw protruded, and focusing on Emaleen, a broad smile slowly crept across his face. Though it was terrifying, and was far from kind, Emaleen did not doubt its sincerity.

His left hand uncurled around a large tool, and it dropped to the floor. The resonating sound it made led Emaleen to believe that it was heavy, though Mordech had appeared to be holding it with ease. Emaleen knew he would have a way to get through the doors, and she knew he would abandon it when he reached her. He would not use any tools with her, but the ones that he naturally had.

"Eamleen, dear," he said in his deep, raspy voice. "It _is _good to see you again."

Emaleen could not help the small whimper that escaped her throat when he spoke. He was the greatest, most terrifying foe she had ever even imagined, and now he had her completely trapped. She had run from him, and had come to believe she was safe, but now she was trapped, without even the smallest glimmer of hope.

"Did you ever really think that I had lost you?" he asked. Emaleen remained silent, her muscles aching slightly from mindlessly pushing against the door.

"When you jumped off that cliff, I thought for a moment that I had. I thought you were gone from me then, and that was very frustrating. I found a slower, less reckless, way down the cliff, and saw that little scattering of homes. I knew if you had lived through the jump and the swim, which I believed you had, you would be in one of the homes. Cold, wet, tired, and afraid, I knew you would have gone to one of them for the night.

"So, I thought I would let you have the respite. I knew that you would try and leave the planet—what more did you have there, really?—so I headed to the port. I found the crew of this ship in the town, out for a last hurrah before they took off. When someone makes their livelihood from traveling back and forth on a ship, it's easy enough to convince them to do a job for you, if you present it in the right way. A little show of strength to grab their attention and a flash of a reward to entice them. I couldn't of course, tell them you had ran away from me and I was intent on killing you, but I could tell them that you were a fugitive, and it was important that I know where you were, and could come to take you from a place where you could not run from me again."

A fugitive. All this time, the crew believed that Emaleen was a fugitive. They thought that _she _was the bad one. No wonder Jalson had not allowed her to explain earlier; he likely believed that she would simply try to talk her way out of what he saw as justice.

"They agreed to help, and told me they could be sure to have a spot ready for you. Something about a cook who could be scared away. I hoped you wouldn't find a spot on another ship before you came to this one, but I had not thought that you would have come _directly _to it.

"I suppose that stroke of luck made up for your ship's delay here. I had begun to think that someone changed their mind with following through with our deal. It seems that wasn't the case, thankfully. That would have been messy for everyone."

It finally made sense to Emaleen why Jalson had been so upset at the prospect of landing after the ship was hit by the rocks, and why he was so anxious to get back on track. In a sense, Jim had been correct. Jalson was agitated because he felt a sense of loyalty to his work and finishing his jobs efficiently and in a timely manner. In this case, however, his sense of loyalty belonged to a job which Jim was not aware of.

Standing, pressed against the door, facing Mordech, Emaleen felt that she was in a daze as she listened to him speak. The situation felt surreal to her. She attributed that to some primal part of her mind, creating something of a numbing effect, so that the fear was subdued, instead of sending her heart galloping out of her chest.

That was the case, until Mordech began to walk towards her. For someone as large as he was, his steps were slow and even, and he seemed to float towards her, rather than walk. Emaleen felt her knees begin to buckle and she pushed her hands on the door, trying desperately to remain standing, terrified of falling to her knees and being in such a defenseless position. Her breath stuck somewhere in her throat, and her entire body felt like ice. She blinked furiously to clear the tears from her eyes, not wanting to be incapacitated by a blurred vision.

"Your poor mother," Mordech said, shaking his head. "How she fought to give you a way out. She died for it, Emaleen. And you didn't get very far, did you?"

"Stop it," Emaleen said, her words hardly making it out of her mouth. "Don't talk about her."

"I _will _talk about," he replied, his voice becoming louder and stronger as he spoke, still stepping slowly towards her. "I will go over each detail of it that I wish to, because you and I will be going back to my ship, which you so _futilely _tried to escape, where we will spend some time together, because after all the trouble you've caused, frankly, my dear, I think I deserve that!"

On his last word, there was a loud explosion, and the ship rocked. Emaleen finally lost her standing, and fell to the floor with a scream. With the loud noise came a bright flash of light and a wave of heat from her right. She became aware of bits of wood flying from that direction, and she kept her head ducked low.

"_Emaleen!"_

Emaleen jumped, first thinking the booming voice belonged to Mordech. The call sounded distorted, and she realized her ears were still ringing from the blast. It took her not even two seconds to realize the voice belonged to Jim. She gasped and looked over her shoulder, and saw that the loud explosion came from a hole being blasted into the side of the ship. She saw Jim, holding a large gun, hovering in the small ship they had been running to. His mouth was moving, though Emaleen could not make out his words. She saw him gesture towards himself, and she realized he meant for her to jump onto the ship.

She whipped her head around, to the spot where Mordech had been standing. At first, all she could see was what looked like a large pile of smoking wood. After a moment of looking at it, however, she saw the pile shift, and knew that Mordech was beneath it, surely finding a way out.

Emaleen had not wanted Jim involved. She made him run on without her because she wanted to ensure his safety. She hadn't wanted him to know of Mordech, and she certainly hadn't wanted Mordech to know of him. If Mordech even saw Jim's face, he would undoubtedly dedicate his next hunt to finding him.

Through the ringing in her ears, Emaleen heard Jim's voice again. She looked back to him, and saw that he was moving the ship closer. She knew that he would come right to her if she did not go to him, and she couldn't have him within reach of Mordech. Pushing herself up on legs she didn't know could support her, she moved toward the ship. Her legs wobbled, but as she looked towards Mordech's pile again, she saw a fierce snarl on his face, and, with a jolt of fear, that the top half of his body was free. If she didn't know that Jim would come to her if he had to, she would have stopped and stayed on the ship, giving Mordech no reason to hunt down anyone else. Instead, she propelled herself forward as best as she could, and jumped for the ship when she reached the smoldering hole.


End file.
